Emerson extended their losing streak to five on Thursday, dropping them down to 2-10-1. They were a single run away from ending the streak, but they lost a 6-5 heartbreaker at the hands of the Wood-Ridge Blue Devils. Unfortunately, that's the second time they've come up short against the Blue Devils this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 5-2 on Tuesday.
As for Wood-Ridge, their win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-6. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.5 runs over those games.
For Wood-Ridge's part, Michael Prato made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Prato also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Wood-Ridge is undefeated when he allows at most two earned runs, but 5-6 otherwise. Prato was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with one stolen base and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Nicholas Prato, who went 1-for-3 with four stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. Those four stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Nick Scalera was another key player, going 2-for-5 with two stolen bases and one RBI.
Emerson and Wood-Ridge could both be facing uphill battles in their next games considering their disadvantage in the MaxPreps New Jersey Rankings. The Cavaliers (ranked 291st) will meet Park Ridge (ranked 39th) at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Meanwhile, Wood-Ridge will face off against Middlesex at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday with a big rank disadvantage (117 vs. 31).
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
