The Marlington Dukes will challenge the Ursuline Fighting Irish at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Marlington is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last six games.
On Wednesday, Marlington beat Minerva 4-1.
Dylan Heatherington
| 04/23/25 vs Minerva | 2 |
| 04/16/25 @ West Branch | 1 |
| 04/11/25 vs United | 2 |
| 04/04/25 @ South Range | 1 |
| 03/29/25 @ Waynedale | 2 |
Dylan Heatherington made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with two RBI. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in April of 2024.
Heatherington wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Cole Jones, who went 1-for-2 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. Those two runs gave Jones a new career-high. Tatem Hoffman was another, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
Marlington always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .516. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Ursuline posted their closest win since May 16, 2024 on Thursday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past Struthers 9-8. The Fighting Irish haven't had any issues with the Wildcats recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive win against them.
Anthony Triveri was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over four innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Ursuline is 2-1 when he allows at most one earned run, but 4-6 otherwise. Triveri was also big at the plate, getting on base in all five of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on AJ Snyder, who went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. He is becoming a predictor of Ursuline's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 2-7 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Marc DelliQuadri, who went 1-for-3 with one triple, two RBI, and one run.
Marlington's victory was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-4. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.2 runs on average over those games. As for Ursuline, their victory bumped their record up to 6-7.
Marlington couldn't quite get it done against Ursuline in their previous matchup back in May of 2017 as they fell 6-3. Can the Dukes avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
