The Payette Pirates will head out on the road to square off against the New Plymouth Pilgrims at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Payette sitting on four straight wins and New Plymouth on five.
Payette is headed into the game having just posted their closest victory since May 4, 2024 on Monday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-4 win over Marsing. Six seems to be a good number for the Pirates as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Jahzyon Sylva
| 03/24/25 vs Marsing | 2 |
| 03/15/25 vs Sugar-Salem | 1 |
| 05/07/24 vs Parma | 1 |
| 05/04/24 vs McCall-Donnelly | 1 |
| 04/29/24 @ Weiser | 1 |
Jahzyon Sylva was a major factor no matter where he played. He struck out eight batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off seven hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than eight strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-3. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in doubles (two).
Sylva wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Darrien Pecunia, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-2. Joshua Rodriguez also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Payette was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .400. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
While New Plymouth didn't have the best season last year (they finished 8-12-1), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They blew past Garden Valley 16-1 on Wednesday. 16 seems to be a good number for the Pilgrims as the squad scooped up a win with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Jacob Hartle was a standout: he scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Payton Zigga was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
New Plymouth's record now sits at 5-2. As for Payette, they now have a winning record of 4-3.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Payette has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 6.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like New Plymouth struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.4 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Payette couldn't quite finish off New Plymouth in their previous meeting back in March of 2024 and fell 8-6. Can Payette avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
