Baseball Preview: D.H. Conley Vikings vs. Apex Cougars
The D.H. Conley Vikings will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Apex Cougars at 6:30 p.m. D.H. Conley will be looking to extend their current six-game winning streak.
D.H. Conley is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of North Carolina's top teams: J.H. Rose, who was ranked second in their home state at the time (D.H. Conley was ranked 16th). D.H. Conley walked away with a 4-1 victory over J.H. Rose on Thursday.
Nolan Winfield made a big impact no matter where he played. He pitched 6.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits. Winfield has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in six consecutive pitching appearances. Winfield was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-4.
Winfield wasn't the only one making solid contact as six players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Riley Williams, who scored a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Williams has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive pitching appearances.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Apex, who bounced back after a tough loss on the road on Monday. They came out on top against Green Hope by a score of 5-2 on Thursday.
Jace Shoffner tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run while striking out six over six innings pitched.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Jay Hale, who went 3-for-3 with three RBI and a stolen base. Another player making a difference was Will Newton, who scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
D.H. Conley pushed their record up to 15-2 with that win, which was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Apex, their victory bumped their record up to 13-5.
D.H. Conley took their win against Apex in their previous meeting back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 10-1. Will D.H. Conley repeat their success, or does Apex have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
