The St. John Fighting Herald will head out on the road to challenge the Jefferson Area Falcons at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. St. John will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each match than the last.
St. John had to skate by with only a two-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the ten-run drubbing they dealt Pymatuning Valley on Thursday. The Fighting Herald were the clear victors by a 12-2 margin over the Lakers. The result was nothing new for the Fighting Herald, who have now won ten games by ten runs or more so far this season.
St. John got a great performance from Carson Williams as he tossed five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits. The dominant performance also gave Williams a new career-high in strikeouts (five).
At the plate, Brady Cole was a standout: he went a perfect 2-for-2 with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. That's the most hits he has posted since back in May of 2024. Ezra Campbell was another key player, going 2-for-4 with four RBI, one stolen base, and one run.
St. John was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .407. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Jefferson Area had already won five in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.4 runs) and they went ahead and made it six on Thursday. They skirted past the Wildcats 5-3. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Falcons have posted since April 14th.
The team relied heavily on Michael Riffle, who went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI. Logan Saksa also deserves some recognition as he hit his first triple of the season.
Jefferson Area pushed their record up to 11-7 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.5 runs over those games. As for St. John, their record now sits at 15-4.
St. John's speedy runners might be the difference in Monday's match. The Fighting Herald have been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.9 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Jefferson Area, though, as they've been averaging only 1.2 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will St. John continue to outrun the ball?
St. John was able to grind out a solid win over Jefferson Area when the teams last played back in May of 2024, winning 4-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Fighting Herald since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
