The Northwestern Regional Highlanders will be playing in front of their home fans against the Nonnewaug Chiefs at 3:45 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Northwestern Regional entered their tilt with Terryville with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Kangaroos a 12-0 shutout on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Nonnewaug came into Wednesday's contest having lost three straight, but that streak is now in the rearview. They were the clear victor by an 18-4 margin over Thomaston. The high-scoring effort was just what Nonnewaug needed considering they were shutout in their previous matchup.
R.J. Barksdale made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (he also didn't allow any walks). Barksdale has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive pitching appearances. Barksdale was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-5.
In other batting news, Nonnewaug let Henry Keil and Mason Pieger loose on the outfield. Keil scored three runs and stole two bases while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances, while Pieger scored three runs while going 3-for-3. Keil has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played. Brayden Whipple was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
Northwestern Regional's victory was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 3-0. Those victories were due in large part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.4 runs per game. As for Nonnewaug, their win (their first of the season) made their record 1-3.
Everything went Northwestern Regional's way against Nonnewaug when the teams last played back in May of 2023 as Northwestern Regional made off with a 15-3 victory. Will Northwestern Regional repeat their success, or does Nonnewaug have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
