The Sherrard Tigers will take on the Mercer County Golden Eagles at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. One thing working in Sherrard's favor is that they have posted at least ten runs in their last four contests.
Last Thursday, Sherrard made easy work of Annawan-Wethersfield and carried off an 11-1 win. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 13 games by six runs or more this season.
The team relied heavily on Harrison Curry, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Brylan Bender was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two RBI and one run.
Sherrard was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .391. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .308 or higher in six consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, it can be hard to translate regular season success to the playoffs, but Mercer County had no problem doing just that on Monday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Titans a 1-0 shutout. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last five times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Not much got past Carson Boelens, who gave up just three hits and racked up 14 Ks to keep Monmouth-Roseville off the board. Mercer County is undefeated when Boelens posts eight or more strikeouts, but 11-17 otherwise.
At the plate, Mercer County secured the victory behind a pair of hitters. One of them was Grady Norton, who went 1-for-3 with one stolen base. Another was Kale Breeden, who got on base in two of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases and one run.
Sherrard has been performing well recently as they've won six of their last eight contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 17-8 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.6 runs over those games. As for Mercer County, their victory bumped their record up to 14-17.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Sherrard has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Mercer County struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.6 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Sherrard took their win against Mercer County in their previous matchup back in April by a conclusive 8-0 score. Will the Tigers repeat their success, or do the Golden Eagles have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
