The Joaquin Rams will face off against the Lovelady Lions at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Joaquin will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak.
Joaquin's tournament run continued when they took on Alto on Friday. Joaquin came out on top against Alto by a score of 6-1.
T.J. Hawkins made a big impact no matter where he played. He pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Hawkins was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 1-for-1. He also brought in an RBI, marking his first of the season.
In other batting news, Karson Rogers and Kaden Miller did most of the damage at the plate: Rogers went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases and one RBI, while Miller scored two runs and stole three bases while getting on base in two of his three plate appearances. Carter Graves also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Meanwhile, Lovelady earned a 6-1 win over Corrigan-Camden on Friday.
Lance Pierce spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on two hits and racked up ten Ks. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in strikeouts.
On the hitting side, Lovelady's victory was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Lane Wilson, who scored a run while going 2-for-3. Another was Brady McCullough, who scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Lovelady now has a winning record of 2-1. As for Joaquin, their win bumped their record up to 5-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Joaquin has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Lovelady struggles in that department as they've been averaging 10 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Joaquin might still be hurting after the 17-2 defeat they got from Lovelady when the teams last played back in March of 2018. Can Joaquin avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
