The Taunton Tigers will challenge the King Philip Regional Warriors at 3:45 p.m. on Monday. Taunton is coming into the match hot, having won their last six games.
Taunton is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Massachusetts' top teams: Attleboro, who was ranked 21st at the time (Taunton was ranked third). The Tigers never let the Bombardiers get on the board and left with a 4-0 win on Friday.
Not much got past Johnny Escobalez, who gave up just two hits and racked up eight Ks to keep Attleboro off the board. Escobalez has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in eight consecutive appearances.
Jeremy Knief
| 05/16/25 @ Attleboro | 2 |
| 05/14/25 vs Sharon | 1 |
| 05/12/25 @ Franklin | 1 |
At the plate, Jeremy Knief was excellent, going 1-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one double. He is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last three games he's played.
Meanwhile, King Philip Regional hadn't done well against Franklin recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. The Warriors won by a run and slipped past the Panthers 4-3.
King Philip Regional also got a great performance from Nate Pennini as he struck out seven batters over 6.1 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off eight hits (and not a single walk). Those seven strikeouts gave Pennini a new career-high.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Tommy Gately, who went 1-for-2 with two runs and one double. Vinny Menendez was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Taunton's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 16-3. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.3 runs on average over those games. As for King Philip Regional, their victory bumped their record up to 15-3.
King Philip Regional's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Taunton hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .332. It's a different story for King Philip Regional, though, as they've only averaged .256. Will they be able to contain Taunton's hitters?
Taunton couldn't quite finish off King Philip Regional in their previous meeting back in April and fell 2-0. Will the Tigers have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
