The Sumner Spartans will head out to challenge the Bethel Bison at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their matchups after big wins in their previous games.
Sumner lost a heartbreaker the last time they played Emerald Ridge, but it's fair to say they got their revenge given the result of Wednesday's contest. The Spartans were the clear victors by a 9-2 margin over the Jaguars on Wednesday. The Spartans might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight games by six runs or more this season.
Wyatt Plyler spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned runs on three hits and racked up eight Ks.
On the hitting side, Xander Cypher was excellent, going 1-for-4 with one home run and three RBI. Drew Wicklander also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Bethel). They blew past Spanaway Lake 12-2 on Wednesday. The Bison haven't had any issues with the Sentinels recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive win against them.
Jacob Vance made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out nine over five innings pitched. Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Keegan Peck, who went 2-for-3 with two doubles, two RBI, and one run. Those two doubles gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Josh Sidock, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Bethel hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their strikeout total in three consecutive matchups.
Sumner has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-5 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.4 runs on average over those games. As for Bethel, their record is now 4-13.
Sumner took their win against Bethel in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 9-3 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Spartans since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
