Baseball Recap: Hickory Beats Indian River for Their Seventh Straight Win

Hawks

Previous Games

05/20/25 @ Indian River	7-2
05/16/25 vs Nansemond River	10-3
05/15/25 @ Grassfield	9-3
05/08/25 @ Western Branch	2-1
05/06/25 vs Lakeland	7-2
+ 2 more games

Hickory had already won six in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8 runs) and they went ahead and made it seven on Tuesday. They walked away with a 7-2 victory over the Indian River Braves. That's the second time they've managed to beat them this season, as they also won 5-4 back in March.

Tommy Blackburn tossed a big game, striking out seven batters over 5.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off six hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in April of 2024.

At the plate, Ryan Kennedy was excellent, earning two runs and two stolen bases. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Eli Kraft, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base and one run.

Hickory's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 15-5. Those road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.5 runs on average over those games. As for Indian River, they have been struggling recently as they've lost six of their last eight games. That's put a noticeable dent in their 7-14 record this season.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Hickory will square off against Kempsville at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. As for Indian River, they will challenge Salem at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday.