Baseball Game Preview: Lincoln Fighting Zebras vs. Wheatland Pirates

For the second straight game, Lincoln will face off against Wheatland. The Fighting Zebras will take on the Pirates at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Lincoln is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.1 runs per game this season.

Lincoln barely beat Wheatland the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Fighting Zebras' pitchers stepped up to hand the Pirates a 7-0 shutout on Tuesday. Considering the Fighting Zebras have won 12 matchups by more than six runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.

Jackson Cook made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out eight over six innings pitched. He has been consistent for a while: he hasn't given up more than two walks in nine consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with one run and one RBI.

In other pitching news, Cooper Maul looked comfortable as he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in six consecutive appearances.

Back at the plate, Adriano Montes was excellent, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base and two RBI.

Lincoln has been performing well recently as they've won ten of their last 12 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 19-7 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.2 runs on average over those games. As for Wheatland, their loss was their fourth straight on the road, which dropped their record down to 14-8-1.

Wheatland's pitching crew better be locked in on Thursday. Lincoln hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. It's a different story for Wheatland, though, as they've been averaging only 0 home runs. Will they be able to keep Lincoln in the park? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.