The Cranford Cougars will face off against the Oratory Prep Rams at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Cranford is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last four games.
Cranford's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They put the hurt on Union with a sharp 13-0 win. Considering the Cougars have won seven games by more than six runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Morgan Nicholls looked comfortable as he kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits over four innings pitched. What's more, he posted three strikeouts, the most he's had over his last three matchups.
Patrick Bendert
| 05/01/26 @ Union | 5 |
| 05/01/25 @ Scotch Plains-Fanwood | 3 |
| 04/30/26 vs Summit | 2 |
| 04/18/26 @ Watchung Hills Regional | 2 |
| 04/16/26 vs Governor Livingston | 2 |
At the plate, Cranford let Patrick Bendert and Brayden Fry run wild. Bendert went 3-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and one double, while Fry went 2-for-3 with one home run, four runs, and one stolen base. Those five RBI gave Bendert a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Evan Ketschke, who earned two runs and one stolen base.
Cranford lost a few balls and finished the game with three home runs. That's the most home runs they've managed all season.
Meanwhile, Oratory Prep lost 14-2 to Millburn on Saturday. The Rams have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Blake Duddy was cooking despite his team's loss, going 1-for-2 with one home run. He has become a key player for Oratory Prep: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least one home run, but 5-12 otherwise.
Oratory Prep's defeat dropped their record down to 7-13. As for Cranford, their victory bumped their record up to 11-7.
Cranford was able to grind out a solid win over Oratory Prep when the teams last played back in April of 2025, winning 8-3. Do the Cougars have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Rams turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
