A feisty cat fight will be fought as Our Lady of Mount Carmel Cougars take on Pallotti Panthers at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Our Lady of Mount Carmel will be strutting in after a win while Pallotti will be coming in after a loss.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel made up a huge gap compared to their last game against Key, but they still couldn't quite topple them. Our Lady of Mount Carmel blew past Key 15-4 on Monday. The high-scoring effort was just what the Cougars needed considering they were shut out in their previous game.
Chase Counts made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Counts was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, Dominic Reynolds and Caleb Pugh did most of the damage at the plate: Reynolds scored two runs and stole Two bases. while going 3-for-3, while Pugh scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Keith Smith, who scored three runs while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Pallotti lost 18-11 to Boys Latin on Monday. The Panthers have struggled against the Lakers recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive lost meetings.
Steven Buckner was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring three runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. The team also got some help courtesy of Robert Gamble, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.
Even though they lost, Pallotti always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .514. That was just more of the same: they've now posted an OBP of .500 or higher every time they've taken the field this season.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel now has a winning record of 2-1. As for Pallotti, they now have a losing record of 1-2.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Our Lady of Mount Carmel has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 6.3 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Pallotti struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel took their victory against Pallotti in their previous meeting back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 15-8. The rematch might be a little tougher for Our Lady of Mount Carmel since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
