West Branch had already won four in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 10.3 runs), and they went ahead and made it five on Tuesday. They put the hurt on the Moshannon Valley Black Knights/Damsels with a sharp 14-1 victory. West Branch might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team's won eight matches by six runs or more this season.
Luke Liptak made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 11 over six innings pitched. Liptak has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in six consecutive pitching appearances. Liptak was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with four RBI, a run, and a double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Nick Parks, who scored two runs while going 2-for-2. Isaac Tiracorda was another key contributor, scoring two runs while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
On Moshannon Valley's side, they saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was JC Smith, who went 2-for-2 with an RBI.
West Branch's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-1. As for Moshannon Valley, they now have a losing record at 2-3.
West Branch will be playing at home against Mount Union at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average, (West Branch: 2.2, Mount Union: 3.9) so any runs scored will be well earned. As for Moshannon Valley, they will head out on the road to take on Harmony Area at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Moshannon Valley is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 6.2 runs per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
