The MacArthur Highlanders will square off against the Cache Bulldogs at 10:00 a.m. on Friday. MacArthur is coming into the contest hot, having won their last six games.
MacArthur proved they can win big on Tuesday (they won by 15) and on Thursday they proved they can win the close ones too. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-2 win over Elk City. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Highlanders have posted since March 2nd.
Champ Bowden looked comfortable as he tossed two innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.
At the plate, MacArthur saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Gavin Keplinger, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one run and one double. Brayden Cooper was another, going 2-for-3 with three RBI.
Meanwhile, Cache lost 19-5 to Lone Grove on Tuesday. The Bulldogs haven't had much luck with the Longhorns recently, as the team has come up short the last six times they've met.
Deshaun Harvey made the most of his time in the batter's box despite the final result and got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one run and one double.
Cache's defeat dropped their record down to 6-11. As for MacArthur, their win bumped their record up to 14-3.
Cache's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: MacArthur hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .314. It's a different story for Cache, though, as they've only averaged .228. Will they be able to contain MacArthur's hitters?
Everything went MacArthur's way against Cache in their previous matchup back in March, as MacArthur made off with an 11-1 victory. Will the Highlanders repeat their success, or do the Bulldogs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
