The Rosewood Eagles will head out to face off against the East Duplin Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Rosewood will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each matchup than the last.
It was a Battle of the Birds when Rosewood faced off against North Lenoir on Saturday. The Eagles put the hurt on the Hawks with a sharp 11-2 victory. The Eagles might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight games by six runs or more this season.
Braxson Waters spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned runs on seven hits and racked up nine Ks. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Zack Tadlock was excellent, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with one run and one RBI. Cam Rye was another key player, going 1-for-4 with three RBI and one triple.
Rosewood always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .561. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, East Duplin entered their tilt with Southern Wayne on Saturday with three consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with four. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 6-5 W against the Saints. That's two games straight that the Panthers have won by just one run.
The team relied heavily on Jack Tuck, who went 1-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March.
Rosewood is on a roll lately: they've won 12 of their last 16 matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 15-7 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.9 runs on average over those games. As for East Duplin, they pushed their record up to 11-6 with the victory, which was their third straight at home.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Rosewood has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like East Duplin struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 10.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Rosewood suffered a grim 15-5 defeat to East Duplin in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. Can the Eagles avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
