The Odyssey Institute Minotaur will look to defend their home field on Monday against the Thatcher Eagles at 3:45 p.m. Odyssey Institute is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.9 runs per game this season.
Odyssey Institute's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 2-0 victory over Tonopah Valley. The win was familiar territory for Odyssey Institute who now have three in a row.
The result came thanks to Joey Perusek's shutout, as he gave up just two hits and racked up 11 Ks. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Odyssey Institute's victory was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Austin Connell, who scored two runs while going 1-for-2. The team also got some help courtesy of Ismael Hinojosa, who went 2-for-3 with a stolen base and a double.
Meanwhile, Thatcher came up short against Safford on Thursday and fell 14-9.
Kody Bingham made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Landon Duncan, who scored two runs while going 2-for-4.
Odyssey Institute is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 13-8-1 record this season. As for Thatcher, their loss dropped their record down to 11-11-1.
Monday's matchup will be a test for both team's pitchers. Odyssey Institute hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .336. However, it's not like Thatcher struggles in that department as they've averaged .349. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Odyssey Institute came up short against Thatcher when the teams last played back in April of 2023, falling 10-5. Thankfully for Odyssey Institute, Brandon Napier (who struck out ten batters over seven innings while giving up three earned (and two unearned) runs off eight hits (and not a single walk)) 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
