The Pontotoc Warriors will head out to face off against the Cleveland Central Wolves at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The last three games Pontotoc has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
On Friday, Pontotoc didn't have quite enough to beat Oxford and fell 2-1. That's two games in a row now that the Warriors have lost by just one run.
Pontotoc saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Braxton Whiteside, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one run.
Meanwhile, Cleveland Central had already won six in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.8 runs) and they went ahead and made it seven on Thursday. They blew past the Tigers 16-1.
Christian McKinney made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed three innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with one triple, one stolen base, and one run.
In other batting news, Nathaniel Lessie was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with four RBI, two runs, and one stolen base. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Co Luciano was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Cleveland Central always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .800. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Cleveland Central pushed their record up to 9-12 with the victory, which was their sixth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.2 runs on average over those games. As for Pontotoc, their defeat dropped their record down to 17-10.
Everything went Pontotoc's way against Cleveland Central in their previous meeting back in April of 2017, as Pontotoc made off with a 10-0 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Warriors since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
