Baseball Game Preview: Tarboro Vikings vs. Gates County Red Barons

Tarboro is 2-8 against Gates County since May of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. Tarboro will host Gates County at 6:00 p.m.

Tarboro had been on a three-game streak of scoring at least ten runs, but Gates County put an end to it on Tuesday. Tarboro took a 6-2 hit to the loss column at the hands of Gates County. The game snapped a strange streak: the last four times these teams have met, it?s been the away team that?s taken home the W.

For Gates County's part, James Rountree made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over five innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits (and only one walk). Rountree has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.

In other batting news, Gates County let Lyric Pittman and James Riddick run wild. Pittman scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-3, while Riddick scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-3. Those two stolen bases gave Riddick a new career-high. Jack Greene was another key player, scoring a run while going 1-for-4.

Gates County has been struggling recently as they've lost three of their last four matchups. That's put a noticeable dent in their 3-7 record this season. Tarboro's defeat was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 2-1 and their overall record down to 7-3.