Fremont, Nebraska - Fresh off three-rest days, the longest off-stretch of the season, the Fremont Moo (5-2 in second half) start a four-game set with the Plainsmen (0-8 in second half). It’s the last series of the year for the Plainsmen, a traveling, non-playoff eligible team.

It’s been a rough season for the Plainsmen, who are still searching for their first win of the season. Most recently was a two-game series against the Hastings Sodbusters on Monday and Tuesday. In game one, the Sodbusters got out to an early lead and rode it to an 8-6 victory. Things didn’t go better in game two, as a big fifth inning propelled Hastings to a 7-1 win. That dropped the Plainsmen to 0-13 on the season. 

Luke Froelich has led a struggling offense, hitting .294 on the year. Other contributors have included Chris Ortega (.292), Jackson Brooks (.279), Logan Worm (.250), Dean Samuel (.212) and CJ Fish (.206). Froelich has the lone homerun on the year and leads the team in RBIs with eight. 

On the mound, no pitcher has recorded a win yet, but Owen Kelley has been the most consistent starter, with just a 1.286 ERA in 16.1 innings pitched.

The Moo are looking to get back on track after a weekend where they dropped both games of a two-game set against the league leading Casper Spuds. In game one, the Moo snapped a seven-game win streak, but it would come to a close as Casper dominated 12-3. In game two, another fast start for Casper led to a 10-1 Spuds win. Casper has now won 15 games in a row.

The Moo have slowly seen their batting averages rise recently, with Tyrus Petsche leading the way at .316. Cooper Fuchino (.307) and Bridger Coleman (.300) are close behind. Coleman has the RBI title at 16, while Stephen Espinoza (15), Dylan Brandenbrg (11) and Fuchino (10) are in striking distance. Coleman also leads the team in homeruns at two. Espinoza, Fuchino, Petsche, Hunter Snyder and Collin Pitts all have a homerun as well.

Robert O’Malley has been the ace so far for Fremont, with a 3-0 record and a team leading 0.529 ERA. He is the expected game one starter for Fremont. Alex Oliver has been the top reliever for Fremont with four saves in four save opportunities. He sports a 1.2 ERA, second best on the team.

This weekend’s series is the first and only meeting between these two teams this season. Entering the series, among playoff-eligible teams), the Moo sit in third. Casper and Spearfish are ahead, while the Sodbusters and Zap sit 2.5 and 5.0 games back, respectively.

First pitch for the first and last games of the series, on Thursday and Sunday, will be at 5:05 p.m. The middle two games on Saturday and Sunday are both set for 7:05 first pitches.