The Bethlehem Central Eagles will face off against the Ballston Spa Scotties at 4:15 p.m. on Thursday. Bethlehem Central has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the game with four straight losses, while Ballston Spa will come in with eight straight wins.
Bethlehem Central managed to slip by Colonie Central the last time these teams faced off, but didn't have those same answers this time around. The Eagles came up short against the Wolfpack on Wednesday, falling 13-3.
Bethlehem Central saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Sean Matrose, who went 3-for-4 with one RBI. That RBI marked the first that Matrose has brought in this season.
Meanwhile, Ballston Spa faced Shaker in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Wednesday. The Scotties had just enough and edged out the Bison 3-2. That's two games straight that the Scotties have won by just one run.
Ballston Spa also got a great performance from Jameson Hotaling as he struck out nine batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off six hits. Hotaling has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Kai Graybeal was excellent, going 1-for-4 with one home run and three RBI. Another player making a difference was Doug Chamberlain, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one double.
Ballston Spa's victory was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 8-0. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.8 runs over those games. As for Bethlehem Central, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Bethlehem Central has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Ballston Spa struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Bethlehem Central was able to grind out a solid victory over Ballston Spa when the teams last played back in May of 2024, winning 4-0. Will the Eagles repeat their success, or do the Scotties have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
