The Monarch Coyotes are headed away from home for the first time to challenge the Chatfield Chargers at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Monarch is coming into the contest on a three-game losing streak.
Monarch fell victim to Erie and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They lost 7-0 to the Tigers. The match marked the first time this year in which the Coyotes were not able to get on the board.
Landon Resch was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over 4.2 innings pitched.
At the plate, Monarch saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Preston Hutchings, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base. That stolen base marked the first that Hutchings snagged this season.
While Chatfield didn't have the best season last year (they finished 8-15), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They blew past Dakota Ridge 9-2 on Tuesday. That looming 9-2 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Chargers yet this season.
Brody Batz made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than one hit in three consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with one home run and two RBI.
In other pitching news, Keir Traurig looked comfortable as he pitched three innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Brody Logan, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and one stolen base. Those two runs gave him a new career-high. Colin Metz was another key player, going 2-for-4 with one home run and three RBI.
Chatfield lost a few balls and finished the game with three home runs. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post two or more home runs.
With the win, Chatfield broke their three-game losing streak and moved their record to 6-4. As for Monarch, their loss dropped their record down to 2-4.
