The Heritage Mountaineers will challenge the West Rebels at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams are strolling into their games after big wins in their previous games.
West will be up against a hot Heritage squad: the team just extended their winning streak to six. Heritage never let Union County get on the board and left with an 8-0 victory on Saturday. Considering the Mountaineers have won six matchups by more than five runs this season, Saturday's blowout was nothing new.
The result came thanks to Madden McNeil's shutout, as he gave up just two hits. What's more, he posted five strikeouts, the most he's had over his last four contests.
At the plate, Hayden Sanders was incredible, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and one stolen base. Another player making a difference was Gaven French, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last game, West made sure to put some runs up on the board against Belfry on Saturday. West blew past Belfry 13-4. With that win, the Rebels brought their scoring average up to 6.4 runs per game.
Simon Zomchick looked comfortable as he struck out six batters over four innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits.
On the hitting side, West let Mason Dugan and Will Lenczynski run wild. Dugan scored three runs and stole four bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Lenczynski got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one home run, two stolen bases, and two runs. Dugan is becoming a predictor of West's success: when he posts at least two stolen bases the team is undefeated (and 6-9 when he doesn't). Xan Scheidecker was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
West always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .562. They are a perfect 5-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Heritage's victory bumped their record up to 10-5. As for West, their win bumped their record up to 12-9.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Heritage has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.3 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like West struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 4.4 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Heritage beat West 8-3 in their previous matchup back in April of 2024. Will Heritage repeat their success, or does West has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
