The Newport Cubs will take on the Henley Hornets on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Newport sitting on six straight wins and Henley on 19.
Newport is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They never let Gladstone get on the board and left with a 4-0 victory.
Meanwhile, Henley got the win against La Grande on Tuesday by a conclusive 12-2. Considering the Hornets have won 14 matches by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Mark Carpenter was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in six consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. What's more, he posted two doubles, the most he's had since back in April.
In other batting news, Carson Siems was excellent, going 2-for-3 with two runs and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Beau Pyle, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two RBI and one run.
Henley was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .464. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .344 or higher in three consecutive games.
Henley pushed their record up to 21-2-1 with the win, which was their ninth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.4 runs on average over those games. As for Newport, their record is now 20-4.
Newport skirted past Henley 10-9 in their previous meeting back in March. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Cubs 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
