5/17 - BASEBALL: Taunton @ Franklin
The Breakdown:
The game was originally scheduled for May 8th, but rain forced the game back to this Friday. And because of the delay, the Kelley-Rex is now at stake - for at least one team. Taunton can clinch the Kelley-Rex Division Title with a win over Franklin, but a Franklin win would not hand the Panthers the title because of how many games left each team has.
A Tigers win would give them 11 wins, more than any other Kelley-Rex team would be reaching. For Franklin, a win would keep their division title hopes alive and they would have to win at least one of their last two to have a shot to win or share the title with Taunton.
Franklin is riding a two-game win streak after a road win over Catholic Memorial and a close win over King Philip. They have been riding the hot bat of freshman Nick Santucci, who entered this week fourth in the league in average at .422 and was tied for second in runs batted in with 14. The third baseman has taken the league by storm and is one of the top underclassman in the entire league. Byron Abbott has also been a strong player at the play for Franklin. On the mound, Brendan Kuzio has been the go-to guy for the Panthers, and entered this week fifth in the league in strikeouts at 40. His 2.47 ERA is among the best in the league.
Taunton just saw their eight game win-streak snapped because of a 5-2 decision to Attleboro. Now the Tigers will look to start another winning streak by clinching the division with a win over Franklin. Pitchers Matt Nunes and Connor Johnson have been the best 1-2 punch starting pitching tandem in the league this season. Nunes entered the week at 3-1 with a 1.06 ERA with 50 strikeouts. Nunes was on the mound for Taunton's 5-2 loss against Attleboro but gave up three hits, but also walked four and hit one batter, and gave up five runs, only four being earned. Johnson came into the week with a 4-1 record and a 1.78 ERA. The lefty is likely to get the start on Friday. At the plate, sophomore Zach MacLean has been leading the way, but has recently been hampered by an injury. Ben Clark and Matt MacLean have also been strong at the plate, combining for 10 RBIs heading into this week and 28 hits.
A Tigers win would give them 11 wins, more than any other Kelley-Rex team would be reaching. For Franklin, a win would keep their division title hopes alive and they would have to win at least one of their last two to have a shot to win or share the title with Taunton.
Franklin is riding a two-game win streak after a road win over Catholic Memorial and a close win over King Philip. They have been riding the hot bat of freshman Nick Santucci, who entered this week fourth in the league in average at .422 and was tied for second in runs batted in with 14. The third baseman has taken the league by storm and is one of the top underclassman in the entire league. Byron Abbott has also been a strong player at the play for Franklin. On the mound, Brendan Kuzio has been the go-to guy for the Panthers, and entered this week fifth in the league in strikeouts at 40. His 2.47 ERA is among the best in the league.
Taunton just saw their eight game win-streak snapped because of a 5-2 decision to Attleboro. Now the Tigers will look to start another winning streak by clinching the division with a win over Franklin. Pitchers Matt Nunes and Connor Johnson have been the best 1-2 punch starting pitching tandem in the league this season. Nunes entered the week at 3-1 with a 1.06 ERA with 50 strikeouts. Nunes was on the mound for Taunton's 5-2 loss against Attleboro but gave up three hits, but also walked four and hit one batter, and gave up five runs, only four being earned. Johnson came into the week with a 4-1 record and a 1.78 ERA. The lefty is likely to get the start on Friday. At the plate, sophomore Zach MacLean has been leading the way, but has recently been hampered by an injury. Ben Clark and Matt MacLean have also been strong at the plate, combining for 10 RBIs heading into this week and 28 hits.
Poll:
HockomockSports.com Picks | ||||||||||
Ryan Lanigan |
Josh Perry |
Dan Libon |
John Botelho |
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HockomockSports.com Staff | ||||||||||
Taunton @ Franklin Friday, 4:00 |
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Baseball | Lanigan 1-0 | Perry 1-0 | Libon 0-1 | Botelho 1-0 |
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Boys Lax | Lanigan 0-1 | Perry 0-1 | Libon 0-1 | Botelho 1-0 |
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Softball | Lanigan 1-1 | Perry 1-1 | Libon 1-1 | Botelho 2-0 |
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Total | Lanigan 2-2 | Perry 2-2 | Libon 1-3 | Botelho 4-0 |
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