Mission Oak hasn't had much luck against Lemoore recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Hawks will be playing at home against the Tigers at 4:30 p.m. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Mission Oak will bounce into Friday's contest after beating Tulare Western, who they had gone 1-8 against in their nine prior meetings. The Hawks came out on top in a nail-biter against the Mustangs on Wednesday, sneaking past 4-2.
Gage Hastin was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit over 6.1 innings pitched. What's more, he posted five strikeouts, the most he's had since back in May of 2024. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with one stolen base.
Ben Romans
| 04/30/25 vs Tulare Western | 3 |
| 04/23/25 @ Dinuba | 2 |
| 04/15/25 @ Mt. Whitney | 2 |
| 04/14/25 vs Porterville | 2 |
| 04/11/25 @ Hanford | 1 |
In other batting news, Ben Romans was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with three doubles, two runs, and two RBI. Those three hits gave him a new career-high.
Mission Oak hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least five batters in three consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, it may have taken nine innings to finish the job, but Lemoore ultimately got the result they hoped for on Wednesday. They won by a run and slipped past Tulare Union 4-3. The win continues a trend for the Tigers in their matchups with the Tribe: they've now won nine in a row.
Like Mission Oak, Lemoore also got a great game from a two-way player: Ian Snell. He struck out 13 batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off four hits. Lemoore is 4-1 when Snell posts eight or more strikeouts, but 8-9 otherwise. Snell was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Tristan Puga, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run and one double. Tyson Kinter was another key player, going 2-for-4 with one double and one RBI.
Mission Oak has been performing well recently as they've won ten of their last 12 games. That's provided a massive bump to their 12-9-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.9 runs on average over those games. As for Lemoore, their win bumped their record up to 12-10.
Mission Oak was able to grind out a solid victory over Lemoore in their previous meeting back in March, winning 5-2. Do the Hawks have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Tigers turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
