The Millard North Mustangs will take on the Papillion-LaVista Monarchs in a tournament on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Millard North barely beat Burke the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Mustangs never let the Bulldogs get on the board and left with a 10-0 victory on Thursday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Mustangs.
Brandon Berge looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run over four innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Millard North got a massive performance out of Alexander Michaud, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Marcus Hankins, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two doubles, one stolen base, and one run.
Millard North 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 four consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Papillion-LaVista). They put the hurt on Omaha South with a sharp 14-0 win on Thursday. The victory was familiar territory for the Monarchs, who have now won five games in a row.
Papillion-LaVista also got a great performance from Brett Hoelscher as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched.
At the plate, Luke Bennett and Evan Eddie did most of the damage at the plate: Bennett went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI, while Eddie went 1-for-2 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. Those two stolen bases gave Bennett a new career-high. Jaxson Povich was another key player, going a perfect 1-for-1 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Papillion-LaVista pushed their record up to 11-5 with the win, which was their eighth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.5 runs on average over those games. As for Millard North, their win bumped their record up to 12-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Millard North has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Papillion-LaVista struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Millard North came out on top in a nail-biter against Papillion-LaVista in their previous matchup on April 1st, sneaking past 2-1. Will the Mustangs repeat their success, or do the Monarchs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
