The Making Waves Academy Marlins will head out to challenge the Urban Blues at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Making Waves Academy is coming into the game hot, having won their last eight games.
Making Waves Academy is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on Cornerstone Christian with a sharp 23-2 victory on Friday. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest win of the season.
Oscar Villalobos was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out nine batters over five innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in six consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with three RBI and one stolen base.
Emmanuel Alberto
| 04/18/25 @ Cornerstone Christian | 5 |
| 04/16/25 vs Cornerstone Christian | 2 |
| 04/11/25 vs Leadership Public Schools Richmond | 1 |
| 04/09/25 vs Marin Academy | 2 |
| 03/28/25 @ Bentley | 1 |
| + 6 more games |
In other batting news, Emmanuel Alberto was a standout: he went a perfect 4-for-4 with five stolen bases, four runs, and two RBI. He has been hot for a while, having posted at least one stolen base the last 11 times he's played. Another player making a difference was Juan Gomez, who went a perfect 5-for-5 with four runs, four RBI, and one double.
Making Waves Academy kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 22 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in four consecutive matches.
Galileo typically has all the answers at home, but on Tuesday Urban proved too difficult a challenge. They were the clear victors by a 14-1 margin over the Lions. The Blues haven't had any issues with the Lions recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.
Like Making Waves Academy, Urban also got a great game from a two-way player: Conor Darling. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit. Darling is becoming a predictor of Urban's success: when he allows at most one hit the team is 2-1 (and 4-5 when he doesn't). Darling was also big at the plate, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. Those two RBI gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Benji Dawes, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with five stolen bases, two RBI, and one run. He has become a key player for Urban: the team is 5-2 when he posts at least two stolen bases, but 1-4 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Zuri Fox, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Making Waves Academy's record is now 9-4-1. As for Urban, the win got them back to even at 6-6.
Urban's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Making Waves Academy hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .340. It's a different story for Urban, though, as they've only averaged .230. Will they be able to contain Making Waves Academy's hitters? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
