Baseball Game Preview: Richlands Wildcats vs. Swansboro Pirates

Richlands hasn't had much luck against Swansboro recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Richlands Wildcats will venture away from home to challenge the Swansboro Pirates at 7:00 p.m. The last four games Richlands has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.

Richlands will bounce into Friday's contest after beating East Duplin, who they had gone 1-8 against in their nine prior meetings. Richlands won by a run and slipped past East Duplin 10-9. The Wildcats' hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.

Tanner Brinson made a big impact no matter where he played. He pitched five innings while giving up just two earned (and four unearned) runs off seven hits. Brinson was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing Two bases. while going 1-for-3. He also brought in two RBI, marking his first of the season.

In other batting news, Marcus Branthoover was a standout: he scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Ashton Courdle, who scored two runs and stole Two bases. while going 4-for-5.

Meanwhile, Swansboro was not able to break out of their rough patch on Wednesday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They were a single run away from ending the streak, but they lost a 4-3 heartbreaker at the hands of Hoggard.

Swansboro saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Dean Germosen, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-3.

Richlands has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 4-3 record this season. They've had to fight for that success though, as they only beat their opponents by an average of 1.33 runs across that stretch. Swansboro's defeat dropped their record down to 2-4.

Richlands couldn't quite finish off Swansboro in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 and fell 4-2. Can Richlands avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.