Auburn Riverside is preparing for their first district matchup of the season on Tuesday. They will head out on the road to face off against the Kennedy Catholic Lancers at 4:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Kennedy Catholic will challenge a team with plenty of momentum: Auburn Riverside extended their winning streak to four on Tuesday. The Ravens blew past Auburn 8-2.
Cole Svendsen was incredible, scoring a run and stealing two bases while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. Braydon Rudolph also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen base of the season.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Kennedy Catholic, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They never let Kentridge get on the board and left with a 10-0 victory on Wednesday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Lancers considering their two-run performance the matchup before.
Dante Saladino was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit over four innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Kennedy Catholic is undefeated when he allows at most one earned run, but 3-5 otherwise. Saladino was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, Jesse LaBella and Elliot Kelley-Petersen did most of the damage at the plate: LaBella scored two runs while going 2-for-3, while Kelley-Petersen went a perfect 1-for-1 with one stolen base and two RBI. LaBella is becoming a predictor of Kennedy Catholic's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 4-5 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Seamus Dunn, who scored two runs while going 1-for-1.
Kennedy Catholic was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .529. They are a perfect 4-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Kennedy Catholic's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-5. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Auburn Riverside, their record now sits at 7-3.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Auburn Riverside has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Kennedy Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.3 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Auburn Riverside suffered a grim 9-0 defeat to Kennedy Catholic in their previous meeting back in March of 2023. Can the Ravens avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
