The Bingham Miners will head out on the road to face off against the Westlake Thunder at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Bingham has three straight wins, Westlake has seven straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Bingham came out on top against Herriman on Friday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run third inning. The Miners walked away with a 6-1 victory over the Mustangs.
Porter Larsen made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one hit in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base and one run.
In other batting news, Jaxson Sisam and Paxton Larsen did most of the damage at the plate: Sisam went 2-for-4 with one triple, one run, and one RBI, while Paxton went 1-for-4 with one triple, two RBI, and one run. That triple marked the first that Larsen has hit this season. Another player making a difference was Daniel Norris, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with one RBI.
Bingham kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in seven consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Westlake didn't have quite enough to beat Copper Hills on Friday and fell 8-7.
Dawson Ferguson made the most of his time in the batter's box despite the final result and went 2-for-3 with three runs, two doubles, and one stolen base. He is becoming a predictor of Westlake's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 4-2 (and 2-8 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Teigan Vincent, who went 1-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
Bingham's record now sits at 12-4. As for Westlake, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-10.
Westlake's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Bingham has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .450. It's a different story for Westlake, though, as they've only averaged .361. Will they be able to contain Bingham's hitters?
Bingham got the 'W' when the teams last played back in May of 2019 against Westlake by a conclusive 7-1 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Miners since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
