Montague had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 9.7 runs) and they went ahead and made it four on Wednesday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Manistee Chippewas a 6-0 shutout. While the Wildcats didn't have the best season last year (they finished 14-19-1), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
Bryton Belinger and Ryver Jarka made a big impact no matter where they played. Throwing, Belinger didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out seven over 4.1 innings pitched. Meanwhile, Jarka tossed 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Belinger has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances. At bat, Belinger got on base in all four of his plate appearances with one run, one double, and one RBI, while Jarka went 1-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Cooper Bradley, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one run, one double, and one RBI. Dylan Bailey also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Montague was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Manistee only posted a batting average of .095.
Wildcats
| 04/30/25 @ Manistee | 6-0 |
| 04/30/25 @ Manistee | 13-1 |
| 04/24/25 @ Grant | 5-2 |
| 04/24/25 @ Grant | 5-4 |
| 04/16/25 @ Muskegon Catholic Central | 7-3 |
| + 2 more games |
Montague pushed their record up to 12-5-1 with the victory, which was their seventh straight on the road. The road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.7 runs over those games. As for Manistee, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 4-8.
Coincidentally, Montague and Manistee will both be playing Ludington the next time they take the field. The Chippewas will head out to face the Orioles at 4:00 p.m. on Friday, while the Wildcats will head out to face them at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
