Umatilla is 1-9 against South Sumter since March of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Monday. The Bulldogs are taking a road trip to challenge the Raiders at 7:00 p.m. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Umatilla 3.7, South Sumter 3.4) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Umatilla is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. They came out on top against Nature Coast Tech by a score of 6-1.
Umatilla's victory was truly a team effort as six different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Nick Sande, who went 1-for-2 with one home run and three RBI. That's the most RBI Sande has posted since back in March. Another was Corbin Turner, who went 1-for-2 with two RBI, one run, and one double.
Umatilla hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Nature Coast Tech struck out 11 times.
Meanwhile, South Sumter entered their tilt with Astronaut on Tuesday with eight consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with nine. They were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over the War Eagles. Considering the Raiders have won 14 contests by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Bryson Mitchell looked comfortable as he pitched four innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Gabe Sabilona was incredible, firing off two home runs and three RBI while going 3-for-3. Malakhi Boone was another key player, going 1-for-4 with one home run and three RBI.
South Sumter pushed their record up to 22-4 with the win, which was their seventh straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.6 runs on average over those games. As for Umatilla, their record is now 16-13.
Umatilla might still be hurting after the 13-3 loss they got from South Sumter when the teams last played on April 8th. Can the Bulldogs avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
