The Martin County Tigers will take on the Mount Dora Christian Academy Bulldogs at 5:45 p.m. on Monday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
On Friday, Martin County needed a bit of extra time to put away Dr. Joaquin Garcia. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-5 victory over the Bulldogs. That's two games straight that the Tigers have won by just one run.
Joseph Cuccurullo tossed a big game, pitching five innings while giving up just two earned runs off five hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Will Perry was excellent, going 1-for-3 with one home run and two runs. That home run was his first of the season. Another player making a difference was Kamai Purce, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Martin County lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. That's the most home runs they've posted since back in April of 2024.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last contest, Mount Dora Christian Academy made sure to put some runs up on the board against Umatilla on Tuesday. Mount Dora Christian Academy came out on top in a nail-biter against Umatilla, sneaking past 12-10. The win continues a trend for Mount Dora Christian Academy in their matchups with Umatilla: they've now won three in a row.
Mount Dora Christian Academy also got a great performance from Ethan Priest as he struck out nine batters over 4.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and three unearned) runs off six hits. That's the most strikeouts Priest has posted since back in March of 2024.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Britton Wise, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with one home run, three runs, and two RBI. Alex Wise was another key player, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
Martin County has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.3 runs on average over those games. Mount Dora Christian Academy's victory bumped their record up to 4-8.
Martin County was able to grind out a solid win over Mount Dora Christian Academy when the teams last played back in March of 2024, winning 3-0. The rematch might be a little tougher for Martin County since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
