South Mountain is on a 12-game streak of home losses (dating back to last season), Central a six-game streak of away losses (dating back to last season), but someone's luck is about to change. The South Mountain Jaguars will take on the Central Bobcats at 3:45 p.m. on Friday. Central took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on South Mountain, who comes in off a win.
South Mountain has not done well against Sierra Linda recently (they were 0-8 in their previous eight matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Wednesday. South Mountain came out on top against Sierra Linda by a score of 6-3. The victory was just what South Mountain needed coming off of a 12-2 defeat in their prior matchup.
Kirk Bower was excellent, scoring two runs while going 1-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Noah Bura, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Central came up short against Metro Tech on Wednesday and fell 11-7.
Manuel Jimenez put in work while hitting and pitching. He struck out seven batters over 3.1 innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off three hits. Jimenez has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive pitching appearances. Jimenez was even better at the plate, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, Cy Gatson was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-5 with a home run and three RBI. Josiah Fowlkes was another key contributor, going 2-for-5 with two stolen bases, two RBI, and a double.
Even though they lost, Central didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with ten strikeouts. That's the most strikeouts they've managed all season.
South Mountain made their fans wait, but they earned their first win of the season to make their record 1-9. As for Central, their loss dropped their record down to 2-8.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. South Mountain has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.5 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.1 per game. The only question left is which team can snag more.
South Mountain might still be hurting after the 16-10 defeat they got from Central in their previous meeting back in March of 2023. Thankfully for South Mountain, Fabian Martinez (who went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, two runs, and a triple) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
