The Salida Spartans will head out to face off against the Lamar Thunder at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Salida hasn't scored more than two runs for three games straight, a trend the team is eager to reverse.
On Monday, Salida came up short against Sand Creek and fell 7-2.
Tao Adams was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-3 with two RBI and one double. That double marked the first that he has hit this season.
Meanwhile, Lamar made easy work of Burlington on Tuesday and carried off a 17-3 victory. Considering the Thunder have won six games by more than seven runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Alex Williams made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out 12 batters over six innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in five consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-5 with four RBI, one stolen base, and one double. He is becoming a predictor of Lamar's success: when he posts at least three RBI the team is 4-1 (and 4-7 when he doesn't).
In other batting news, Ayden Hose was incredible, firing off two home runs, six RBI, and four runs while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances. Lamar is undefeated when Hose posts three or more RBI, but 5-8 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Jacob Dunning, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs.
Lamar kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. They are 6-1 when they post 11 or more hits.
Lamar has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-8 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.9 runs over those games. As for Salida, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-12.
Salida suffered a grim 13-2 defeat to Lamar in their previous matchup back in April of 2025. Can the Spartans avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
