The Rockwood Rockets are taking a road trip to take on the Moshannon Valley Black Knights/Damsels at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Rockwood is coming into the match hot, having won their last six games.
Rockwood's hitters will try to repeat the strong performance they gave on Friday, when they got past Blacklick Valley's usually-dominant pitching crew. The Rockets put the hurt on the Vikings with a sharp 10-3 victory.
Nathan Show made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing 6.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off six hits. Show was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
In other batting news, Carson Brown was incredible, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, two runs, and one double. Davis Bruening was another key player, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Moshannon Valley, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They came out on top against Juniata Valley by a score of 5-1 on Thursday.
Like Rockwood, Moshannon Valley also got a great game from a two-way player: Rocco Reifer. On the mound, he struck out ten batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. That's the most strikeouts Reifer has posted since back in May of 2024. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. That double was his first of the season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Brady Kephart, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. That's the most runs he has posted since back in May of 2024. Another player making a difference was Ian Dunsmore, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one run.
Moshannon Valley was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .481. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Rockwood pushed their record up to 13-4 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.3 runs over those games. As for Moshannon Valley, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a massive bump to their 7-8 record this season.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Rockwood has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Moshannon Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.5 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Rockwood skirted past Moshannon Valley 6-5 in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Rockets since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
