After flying high against Port Washington last Friday, Homestead came back down to earth. The Homestead Highlanders fell just short of the Whitefish Bay Blue Dukes by a score of 5-4 on Monday. The result was an unpleasant reminder to Homestead of the 13-8 loss they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture back in April.
Paul Nuetzel was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. He struck out seven batters over 6.1 innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits. Nuetzel has been consistent recently: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in six consecutive pitching appearances. Nuetzel was also stellar in the batter's box, going 1-for-5 with a home run and three RBI.
In other batting news, Griffin Bowers was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 4-for-5. Grant Poindexter was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 2-for-4.
Even though they lost, Homestead didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with 11 strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Whitefish Bay only tossed seven.
On Whitefish Bay's side, Ben Van Bell was incredible, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with a home run and four RBI. Another player making a difference was JD Dix, who scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances.
Homestead has traveled a rocky road recently having lost six of their last seven matches, which put a noticeable dent in their 9-12 record this season. As for Whitefish Bay, their win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 12-7.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Homestead will take on Grafton at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday. As for Whitefish Bay, they will head out on the road to face off against Nicolet at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Nicolet's pitching crew has only allowed 2.7 runs per game this season, so Whitefish Bay's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
