St. Mary and Manitou Springs are an even 5-5 against one another since May of 2015, but likely not for long. The St. Mary's Pirates will head out on the road to square off against the Manitou Springs Mustangs at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Even though St. Mary's couldn't quite topple Peyton on Saturday, it was still a huge improvement compared to the 13-point defeat they took when the two last played. St. Mary's put the hurt on Peyton with a sharp 9-3 win. The victory was just what St. Mary's needed coming off of an 18-5 loss in their prior contest.
Ryan Strub made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing two innings while giving up just two earned runs but no hits. Strub was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, Jackson Lewis and Peter Ghigleri did most of the damage at the plate: Lewis scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-3, while Ghigleri scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4. Adam Jolicouer was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Manitou Springs can now show off three landslide victories after their most recent match on Monday. Everything went their way against Salida as Manitou Springs made off with a 16-2 win. While fans of Manitou Springs might be used to big wins, the 14-run margin marked the team's biggest victory yet this season.
Hayden Martinez and Beck Enquist did most of the damage at the plate: Martinez scored three runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3, while Enquist scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. The team also got some help courtesy of Preston Rhodes, who went 1-for-2 with three runs, a triple, and an RBI.
St. Mary's record is now 3-6. As for Manitou Springs, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 6-2-1.
Tuesday's game might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. St. Mary's has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .462. However, it's not like Manitou Springs struggles in that department as they've averaged .489. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
St. Mary's came up short against Manitou Springs in their previous matchup back in April of 2023, falling 7-2. Can St. Mary's avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
