The Evangelical Christian Sentinels will head out on the road to face off against the Island Coast Gators at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Evangelical Christian took a loss when they played away from home on Monday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Tuesday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Babcock an 11-0 shutout. The Sentinels not only won on Tuesday, but they posted their biggest win since March 7th.
Boston Gibbs looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Evangelical Christian got a massive performance out of Harlan Haugen, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two triples, three RBI, and two runs. That's the most runs Haugen has posted since back in April of 2024. Slater Smith was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-3.
Evangelical Christian kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. They are 4-2 when they post 11 or more hits.
Meanwhile, Island Coast waltzed into their match on Tuesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 6-5 W against the Rams. That's two games straight that the Gators have won by just one run.
Hunter Fretwell looked comfortable as he tossed 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits.
On the hitting side, Jayven Torres and Logan Hawkins did most of the damage at the plate: Torres scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-3, while Hawkins scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Grady Schwiezer, who scored two runs while going 2-for-3.
Evangelical Christian pushed their record up to 11-13 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.8 runs on average over those games. As for Island Coast, their record is now 18-6.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Thursday as neither team is afraid to steal. Evangelical Christian has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Island Coast struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.5 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.
