Palma was the 3-2 winner over Monterey when they last played one another back in April, but their luck changed this time around. The Palma Chieftains fell just short of the Monterey Dores by a score of 5-4 on Thursday. That's two games in a row now that Palma has lost by just one run.
Damian Ybarra was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched 4.1 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off six hits.
At the plate, Palma saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Bubba Martinez, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI.
On Monterey's side, Nate Wedderburn was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off six hits (and not a single walk). Wedderburn has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in five consecutive pitching appearances. Wedderburn was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Gino Grammatico, who scored a run while going 3-for-4. Another player making a difference was Evan Takehara, who scored two runs while getting on base in two of his three plate appearances.
This is the second loss in a row for Palma and nudges their season record down to 14-10. As for Monterey, their win ended a four-game drought at home and bumped them up to 10-13.
Palma will take on St. Francis at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Palma is on a three-game streak of home wins, St. Francis a six-game streak of away wins -- so someone will have to leave a streak behind on the field. Monterey will take on Seaside at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Seaside is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.4 runs per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
