Baseball Game Preview: Escambia Gators vs. Pensacola Catholic Crusaders

Escambia is on a three-game streak of home wins, while Pensacola Catholic is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Gators will host the Crusaders at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Escambia is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.5 runs per game this season.

Escambia had to skate by with only a one-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the ten-run drubbing they dealt Pine Forest on Friday. The Gators put the hurt on the Eagles with a sharp 11-1 victory. The win continues a trend for the Gators in their matchups with the Eagles: they've now won four in a row.

Ja'Kel Hopkins

Batters Struck Out (Career)

04/04/25 vs Pine Forest	5
02/27/25 vs Booker T. Washington	2
03/19/25 vs Gulf Breeze	1
03/07/25 @ Pine Forest	1

Carter Mills and Ja'Kel Hopkins dominated on the mound. Mills pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit, while Hopkins pitched three innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. The dominant performance also gave Hopkins a new career-high in strikeouts (five).

On the hitting side, Christian Stone and Tucker Nix did most of the damage at the plate: Stone scored two runs while going 2-for-3, while Nix scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Sean Smudde, who went 1-for-3 with three RBI.

Escambia was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .300 or higher in eight consecutive matches.

Meanwhile, Friday just wasn't the day for Pensacola Catholic's offense. They fell 4-0 to South Walton on Friday.

Escambia's victory bumped their record up to 17-5. As for Pensacola Catholic, their loss dropped their record down to 10-9.

Escambia suffered a grim 10-0 defeat to Pensacola Catholic when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Will the Gators have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.