The Sports Leadership & Management Spartans will look to take advantage of their home field for the first time this season as they take on the Tampa Prep Terrapins at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Sports Leadership & Management will roll into the game after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any runs on Wednesday, then bounced right back against Prestonsburg on Friday. The Spartans blew past the Blackcats 10-2.
Isaiah Morales
| 02/25/25 @ Tampa Prep | 7 |
| 03/28/25 @ Key West | 5 |
| 03/03/25 @ Tampa Catholic | 5 |
| 02/18/25 @ Tampa Catholic | 5 |
| 03/11/25 @ Shorecrest Prep | 3 |
| + 2 more games |
Isaiah Morales was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He also tossed no walks, which is notable because Sports Leadership & Management is 2-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 4-12 otherwise. Morales was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances.
In other pitching news, Chucho Tirado looked comfortable as he pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four).
Back at the plate, Chris Pope was incredible, scoring two runs while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances. What's more, he posted two RBI, the most he's had since back in February. Gionni Smith also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen bases of the season.
Sports Leadership & Management always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .525. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, Tampa Prep entered their tilt with Berkeley Prep on Tuesday with three consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with four. They walked away with a 6-3 win over the Buccaneers.
Tampa Prep also got a great performance from Erik Skiendziel as he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over 6.2 innings pitched. Skiendziel has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Will Futch, who got on base in three of his seven plate appearances with one home run and five RBI. Another player making a difference was Dennis Martino, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Tampa Prep's victory was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-10. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Sports Leadership & Management, their record is now 6-13.
Sports Leadership & Management came out on top in a nail-biter against Tampa Prep when the teams last played back in February, sneaking past 7-6. Will the Spartans repeat their success, or do the Terrapins have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
