The Tug Valley Panthers will head out on the road to challenge the WestSide Renegades at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Tug Valley is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 6.1 runs per game this season.
On Thursday, Tug Valley fell victim to a rough 15-9 loss at the hands of Scott. Tug Valley has struggled against Scott recently, as their match on Thursday was their fourth consecutive lost matchup.
Conner Lackey made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 3-for-4 with four RBI and two doubles. Another player making a difference was Julian Vance, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, WestSide entered their tilt with Van with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. They put the hurt on the Bulldogs with a sharp 18-4 victory on Tuesday. Considering WestSide has won seven matchups by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Bryson Blankenship made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up four earned runs off five hits. Blankenship has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances. Blankenship was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with three RBI and two doubles.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kadien Vance, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4. Braxton Waldron was another key contributor, scoring two runs while getting on base in two of his three plate appearances.
Tug Valley's defeat dropped their record down to 10-13. As for WestSide, their win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 10-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Tug Valley has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like WestSide struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.4. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Tug Valley might still be hurting after the 10-3 loss they got from WestSide in their previous meeting back in March. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of WestSide's Jaeden Lester, who didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 12 over 4.2 innings pitched. Now that Tug Valley knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
