The Westlake Demons will challenge the North Royalton Bears at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
Having struggled with three defeats in a row, Westlake turned things around against Normandy on Thursday. They came out on top against the Invaders by a score of 13-9.
Ethan Thompson
| 04/30/26 @ Normandy | 4 |
| 04/09/26 vs Potsdam | 3 |
| 05/08/25 vs Riverside | 3 |
| 04/15/25 @ North Olmsted | 3 |
| 04/01/25 vs Chardon | 3 |
The team relied heavily on Ethan Thompson, who went 4-for-5 with one home run, four runs, and four RBI. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Benjamin Lasinis, who went 3-for-5 with three RBI and two doubles.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Westlake kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in 11 consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, North Royalton won against Solon on Tuesday with ten runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Thursday. The Bears put the hurt on the Comets with a sharp 10-4 victory. The result was nothing new for the Bears, who have now won six games by six runs or more so far this season.
North Royalton also got a great performance from Nolan Klingbeil as he struck out eight batters over five innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits.
On the hitting side, Jack Hanlon was a standout: he got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs and one stolen base. He continues to improve, besting his previous run total in each of the last three games he's played. Antonio Escano was another key player, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with two runs and one RBI.
Westlake's win bumped their record up to 10-5. As for North Royalton, their victory bumped their record up to 10-6.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Westlake hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.4 home runs per game. However, it's not like North Royalton struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.7 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Westlake came out on top in a nail-biter against North Royalton in their previous matchup back in April of 2023, sneaking past 2-0. Do the Demons have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Bears turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
