Slippery Rock and Hickory are an even 5-5 against one another since May of 2018, but likely not for long. The Slippery Rock Rockets are on the road again on Wednesday to play the Hickory Hornets at 4:00 p.m. Slippery Rock is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.6 runs per game this season.
Slippery Rock will head into Monday's matchup out to bounce back: they won a close one the last time they played, but unfortunately they suffered a serious change of fortune on Monday. They lost 11-1 to Conneaut Area. The result shouldn't come as a shock considering that's the fewest runs Slippery Rock has scored all season.
Isaac McCandless made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-2 with a home run and two stolen bases.
Hickory never got on the board in their matchup on Friday, but that sure wasn't the case in their game against Franklin on Monday. They put the hurt on the Knights with a sharp 12-2 victory. For those curious, yes, that was the biggest win Hickory has managed all season.
AJ Reardon looked comfortable as he tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Joey Cidila was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Max Moreland, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Slippery Rock's defeat dropped their record down to 12-5. As for Hickory, their victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-9.
Hickory's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Slippery Rock hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .329. It's a different story for Hickory, though, as they've only averaged .241. Will they be able to contain Slippery Rock's hitters?
Everything went Slippery Rock's way against Hickory in their previous meeting back in April as Slippery Rock made off with a 12-2 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Slippery Rock since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
