Cardinal Mooney and Clearwater Central Catholic are an even 3-3 against one another since March of 2022, but likely not for long. The Cardinal Mooney Cougars will head out on the road to challenge the Clearwater Central Catholic Marauders at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Cardinal Mooney will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.
On Monday, Cardinal Mooney was able to grind out a solid victory over St. Petersburg Catholic, taking the game 6-1.
Colton Hyde tossed a big game, pitching six innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.
Austin Shields
| 03/03/25 vs St. Petersburg Catholic | 2 |
| 02/25/25 @ North Port | 1 |
| 04/23/24 vs North Port | 1 |
| 03/07/24 @ Bradenton Christian | 1 |
At the plate, Cardinal Mooney let Austin Shields and Wyatt Hossenlopp run wild. Shields went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases and one RBI, while Hossenlopp scored a run and stole a base while going 3-for-3. Those two stolen bases gave Shields a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Michael Geaglone, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and two RBI.
Cardinal Mooney hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their strikeout total in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Clearwater Central Catholic didn't have quite enough to beat Tampa Prep on Friday and fell 5-4. The Marauders have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Zach Wheeler was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched five innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off six hits.
On the hitting side, Austin Snyder was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
Cardinal Mooney pushed their record up to 8-1 with the win, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.3 runs on average over those games. As for Clearwater Central Catholic, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-6.
Clearwater Central Catholic's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Cardinal Mooney hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .367. It's a different story for Clearwater Central Catholic, though, as they've only averaged .191. Will they be able to contain Cardinal Mooney's hitters?
Cardinal Mooney beat Clearwater Central Catholic 9-6 when the teams last played back in March of 2024. Does Cardinal Mooney have another victory up their sleeve, or will Clearwater Central Catholic turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
