The Needles Mustangs will take on the Lincoln County Lynx at 11:00 a.m. on Friday. One thing working in Needles' favor is that they have posted at least ten runs in their last five contests.
Last Friday, Needles made easy work of Awaken Christian and carried off a 14-1 win. Considering the Mustangs have won five games by more than nine runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Holden Jones and Brayden Baca were a major factor no matter where they played. On the mound, Jones pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Meanwhile, Baca pitched 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. That's the fewest hits Jones has allowed since back in May of 2024. At bat, Jones scored two runs while going 1-for-3, while Baca scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2. Needles is undefeated when Jones posts two or more runs, but 3-5-1 otherwise.
Robert Tapia
| 03/21/25 vs Awaken Christian | 4 |
| 02/28/25 vs Churchill County | 2 |
| 03/08/25 @ Chinle | 1 |
| 05/02/24 @ Adelson | 1 |
| 04/02/24 vs Laughlin | 1 |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Robert Tapia, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with three runs, four RBI, and one double. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Hudson Smith, who went 1-for-2 with one triple, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Needles kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.5 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 matches they've averaged 9.6.
Meanwhile, Lincoln County hadn't done well against White Pine recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Lincoln County sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 16-15 victory over White Pine. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Lynx have posted since March 19, 2024.
Needles is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 7-5-1 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.6 runs over those games. The win got Lincoln County back to even at 5-5.
Everything went Needles' way against Lincoln County when the teams last played back in March of 2024, as Needles made off with a 15-0 victory. Will Needles repeat their success, or does Lincoln County has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
