Union City and Maplewood are an even 5-5 against one another since May of 2018, but likely not for long. The Union City Bears will head out on the road to challenge the Maplewood Tigers at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Maplewood took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Union City, who comes in off a win.
Union City took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They had just enough and edged Cochranton out 4-3.
Luke Racop looked comfortable as he tossed 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Ian Kinney, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-2. Another player making a difference was Trevin Capela, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, it was a hard-fought contest, but Maplewood had to settle for a 5-3 defeat against Cambridge Springs on Friday.
Maplewood saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Chase Koelle, who scored a run while going 1-for-4.
Union City's win bumped their record up to 6-4. As for Maplewood, their loss dropped their record down to 8-6.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Union City has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Maplewood struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.8. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Union City came out on top in a nail-biter against Maplewood in their previous matchup last Saturday, sneaking past 7-6. The rematch might be a little tougher for Union City since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
