The Ashe County Huskies will challenge the Watauga Pioneers at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Ashe County proved they can win big on Wednesday (they won by 12) and on Wednesday they proved they can win the close ones too. They skirted past East Gaston 12-10.
Maleah Lovell
| 04/23/25 vs East Gaston | 13 |
| 04/04/24 @ John Paul II Catholic | 12 |
| 04/19/24 @ Freedom | 11 |
| 04/14/25 @ Freedom | 10 |
| 04/09/25 vs Starmount | 10 |
Maleah Lovell made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 13 batters over 4.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits (and only one walk). Those 13 strikeouts gave her a new career-high. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 4-for-4 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Isabella Farmer, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with three stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. What's more, she posted two hits, the most she's had since back in May of 2024. Another player making a difference was Nadilyn Eason, who went 1-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Ashe County was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .469. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as East Gaston only posted a batting average of .333.
Watauga came out on top against North Iredell on Friday thanks in part to the team's impressive four-run sixth inning. The Pioneers walked away with a 7-2 win over the Raiders. That's two games straight that the Pioneers have won by exactly five runs.
Like Ashe County, Watauga also got a great game from a two-way player: Katie Matheson. She struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned runs off 11 hits. Matheson was also big at the plate, going 3-for-5 with two runs and two doubles.
In other batting news, Chloe Wilson was incredible, firing off two home runs and five RBI while going 2-for-3. Jordin Greene was another key player, going 3-for-4 with two RBI.
Ashe County's victory ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 12-9. As for Watauga, their win bumped their record up to 5-14.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Tuesday. Ashe County hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.4 home runs per game. However, it's not like Watauga struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.5 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Ashe County was able to grind out a solid victory over Watauga in their previous meeting last Thursday, winning 10-6. Will the Huskies repeat their success, or do the Pioneers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
