The Wood-Ridge Blue Devils will venture away from home to square off against the Dumont Huskies at 4:15 p.m. on Thursday.
Wood-Ridge came into their game on Wednesday off a hard-fought close win, but unfortunately suffered a serious change of fortune. They came up short against St. Mary, falling 9-0. The loss continues a trend for the Blue Devils in their meetings with the Gaels: they've now lost seven in a row.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Dumont, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Monday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with an 11-9 win over Cliffside Park on Tuesday. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last seven times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Aidan Ramos made a big impact no matter where he played. He pitched 3.2 innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off two hits. Ramos was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
In other batting news, Dumont got a massive performance out of Ryan Mckenna, who went 3-for-4 with three stolen bases, two runs, and one double. Mckenna has become a key player for the Huskies: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 3-7 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Jarrett Carramusa, who went 2-for-5 with three RBI, two doubles, and one run.
Dumont has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-7 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.3 runs over those games. As for Wood-Ridge, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-6.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Thursday as neither team is afraid to steal. Wood-Ridge has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Dumont struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 5.1 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Wood-Ridge came out on top in a nail-biter against Dumont in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, sneaking past 11-10. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Blue Devils since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
