Baseball Game Preview: Roanoke Rapids Yellowjackets vs. Ayden - Grifton Chargers

The Roanoke Rapids Yellowjackets will venture away from home to take on the Ayden - Grifton Chargers at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. Ayden - Grifton took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Roanoke Rapids, who comes in off a win.

Roanoke Rapids took a loss when they played away from home on Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They walked away with a 9-5 win over Nash Central. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last six times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.

Meanwhile, Ayden - Grifton didn't have quite enough to beat Princeton on Monday and fell 4-3.

Ayden - Grifton got a good showing from Slater Persinger, who didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over four innings pitched. Persinger has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in five consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Ayden - Grifton saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Camden Wilson, who went 1-for-3 with one home run and two stolen bases. That home run was Wilson's first of the season.

Roanoke Rapids' victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 8-6. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.7 runs over those games. As for Ayden - Grifton, their loss ended a four-game streak of away wins and brought them to 13-5.

Roanoke Rapids might still be hurting after the 9-2 defeat they got from Ayden - Grifton in their previous matchup back in May of 2024. Can the Yellowjackets avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.