Baseball Game Preview: Mulberry Panthers vs. IMG Academy Gray Ascenders

The Mulberry Panthers will head out to challenge the IMG Academy Gray Ascenders at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The last four games Mulberry has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.

While Mulberry's victory against Winter Haven wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. Mulberry never let Winter Haven get on the board and left with a 1-0 win on Wednesday. That's two games straight that the Panthers have won by just one run.

The result came thanks to Jaden Sweeney's shutout, as he gave up just four hits. He has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Mulberry saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Griffin Cline, who went 1-for-3 with one RBI.

Meanwhile, IMG Academy Gray waltzed into their match on Thursday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They walked away with a 5-2 victory over the Pirates.

IMG Academy Gray pushed their record up to 11-6 with the win, which was their 11th straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.5 runs over those games. As for Mulberry, their victory bumped their record up to 12-5.