Baseball Game Preview: Liberty-Benton Eagles vs. Columbian Tornadoes

The Liberty-Benton Eagles will venture away from home to take on the Columbian Tornadoes at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Liberty-Benton is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last seven games.

Columbian's hitters are going to have their work cut out for them on Thursday: Liberty-Benton hadn't allowed a single run the last three times they've hit the field. The Eagles never let Pandora-Gilboa get on the board and left with an 11-0 victory on Wednesday. The result was nothing new for the Eagles, who have now won 11 games by seven runs or more so far this season.

Columbian came out on top against Clyde on Wednesday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run sixth inning. The Tornadoes were the clear victors by a 7-1 margin over the Fliers. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest win the Tornadoes have posted against the Fliers since May 5, 2021.

Isaiah Tilse spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered a run (which was unearned) on three hits and racked up ten Ks. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Columbian is 3-1 when he allows at most one earned run, but 2-8 otherwise.

At the plate, Columbian let Jamison Woessner and Blake Gaulden run wild. Woessner got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one double, while Gaulden went 2-for-3 with two runs and one RBI. Those two runs gave Gaulden a new career-high.

Liberty-Benton's victory was their seventh straight at home, which pushed their record up to 14-3. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Columbian, their victory bumped their record up to 5-9.

Liberty-Benton skirted past Columbian 4-2 in their previous matchup back in April of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Eagles since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.