After losing to Downey the last time they met, Long Beach Poly decided to demonstrate that turnabout is fair play. The Jackrabbits sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 5-3 victory over the Vikings on Friday.
Tate Hammond
| 03/25/25 @ Calvary Chapel | 3 |
| 04/25/25 @ Downey | 2 |
| 03/29/25 @ Jordan | 2 |
| 04/23/25 @ Millikan | 1 |
| 04/17/25 @ Paramount | 1 |
| + 9 more games |
Tate Hammond was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one hit in six consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with two runs. He has become a key player for Long Beach Poly: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 9-11 otherwise.
In other pitching news, Damian Marquez tossed a big game, pitching five innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Izaiyah Gutierrez, who went 3-for-4 with two doubles, one stolen base, and two RBI. Those two doubles gave him a new career-high. Fausto Gaxiola was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one stolen base and one run.
Long Beach Poly is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six games. That's provided a nice bump to their 12-11 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.8 runs on average over those games. As for Downey, they dropped their record down to 13-11 with the loss, which was their fourth straight at home.
Coming up, Long Beach Poly will host Woodrow Wilson at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. As for Downey, they will head out to challenge Warren at 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
