Baseball Game Preview: New Heights Christian Academy Cougars vs. Ash Grove Pirates

New Heights Christian Academy is 0-3 against Ash Grove since March of 2023 but things could change on Friday. The Cougars will be playing in front of their home fans against the Pirates at 1:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

New Heights Christian Academy's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They put the hurt on Verona with a sharp 15-0 win. The victory continues a trend for the Cougars in their matchups with the Wildcats: they've now won six in a row.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Ash Grove, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They blew past Sarcoxie 12-2 on Thursday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Pirates considering their two-run performance the game before.

Kyler Reece was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off two hits. Reece was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with three runs, three RBI, and one triple. Those three runs gave him a new career-high.

In other batting news, Ty Messley and Jaden Shorter did most of the damage at the plate: Messley went 2-for-3 with two runs, one double, and one RBI, while Shorter went 3-for-4 with three RBI, one run, and one double. Alex Acosta was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs and two doubles.

Ash Grove was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .448. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.

Ash Grove is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 7-3 record this season. As for New Heights Christian Academy, their win bumped their record up to 4-1.

New Heights Christian Academy suffered a grim 12-1 defeat to Ash Grove when the teams last played back in March of 2024. Will the Cougars have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.