Baseball Recap: Derby Makes It Five in a Row at Home

Derby's game on Tuesday was a loss, but they didn't let that memory haunt them on Friday. Everything went their way against the Harding Presidents as they made off with an 18-2 victory. The contest marked the Red Raiders' most dominant win of the season so far.

Isaac McNeill made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over four innings while giving up just two earned runs off five hits (and only one walk). McNeill was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and one stolen base. What's more, he posted two RBI, the most he's had since back in April of 2025.

In other batting news, Derby let Brooklyn Fernandez and Jon Ghiggia run wild. Fernandez went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one RBI, while Ghiggia got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. That's the most runs Fernandez has posted since back in April of 2025. Another player making a difference was Nikolas Kotucek, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs and one double.

Derby was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.

Red Raiders

Previous 5 Games (Home)

04/10/26 vs Harding	18-2
04/06/26 vs Wilby	8-4
04/04/26 vs Waterbury Career Academy	13-1
05/28/25 vs Wilby	7-1
05/27/25 vs Crosby	10-1

Derby pushed their record up to 3-1 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.2 runs over those games. As for Harding, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 0-2.

Looking ahead, Derby will venture away from home to take on Kennedy at 3:45 p.m. on Monday. As for Harding, they will square off against Bunnell at 3:30 p.m. on Monday.