The Middleburg Broncos will head out on the road to square off against the Stanton Blue Devils at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Middleburg was handed a 12-run loss in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Thursday. They skirted past Orange Park 3-1. The win was some much needed relief for the Broncos as it spelled an end to their three-game losing streak.
Dylan Taylor
| 04/10/25 vs Orange Park | 4 |
| 02/10/25 vs Bradford | 3 |
| 04/12/24 vs Westside | 3 |
| 02/21/25 vs Keystone Heights | 2 |
| 04/04/25 @ St. Augustine | 1 |
Dylan Taylor made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run over seven innings pitched. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four). He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with one triple, two RBI, and one run.
In other batting news, Logan Alessi was excellent, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases and one RBI. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in February. Another player making a difference was Johnny De Antonis, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Stanton made easy work of Menendez on Wednesday and carried off a 12-2 victory. The Blue Devils might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight matches by seven runs or more this season.
Like Middleburg, Stanton also got a great game from a two-way player: Gio Cruz. He struck out nine batters over six innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off five hits (and only one walk). Cruz has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 5-for-5. Stanton is undefeated when Cruz posts two or more runs, but 4-11 otherwise.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jose Figueroa, who scored two runs while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances. He has become a key player for Stanton: the team is 6-1 when he posts at least two runs, but 5-10 otherwise. Jhai Mosley was another key player, scoring two runs while going 1-for-4.
Stanton was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .394. They are a perfect 8-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Stanton is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a massive bump to their 11-11 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Middleburg, their record is now 10-14.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Middleburg has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.8 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Stanton struggles in that department as they've been averaging 2.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Middleburg came up short against Stanton in their previous matchup back in April of 2021, falling 13-9. Can the Broncos avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
