After flying high against Highlands Christian last Thursday, Monarch came back down to earth. The Monarch Knights fell victim to a tough 10-4 defeat at the hands of the Western Wildcats on Tuesday. Monarch has struggled against Western recently, as their game on Tuesday was their fifth consecutive lost matchup.
Dominic Guzman made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs while going 1-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Anthony Mercado, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with a double.
On Western's side, they got a great performance from Ryan Schaefer as he didn't allow a single earned run and only two hits while striking out six over five innings pitched. Schaefer has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits in five consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Western let Danny Ortega and Aiden Andreu loose on the outfield. Ortega went 1-for-2 with a home run, three RBI, and two runs, while Andreu scored two runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4. Bryce Huffman was another key contributor, scoring two runs while going 1-for-2.
Monarch's loss dropped their record down to 5-7. As for Western, they are on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last nine matchups, which provided a massive bump to their 14-7 record this season.
Monarch is on the road again on Thursday to play Fort Lauderdale at 6:30 p.m. Monarch is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.3 runs per game this season. As for Western, they will be playing at home against St. Thomas Aquinas at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Western will be looking to keep their eight-game home win streak alive.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
