The Eastbrook Panthers will head out on the road to square off against the Oak Hill Golden Eagles at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Eastbrook is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8 runs per game this season.
Tipton hit Eastbrook with a five-run fifth inning on Saturday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Panthers fell 13-9 to the Blue Devils. The Panthers have struggled against the Blue Devils recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost meeting.
Blake Jacobs made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went a perfect 4-for-4 with three stolen bases and three runs. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 1.1 stolen bases per game. Another player making a difference was Landon McEvoy, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI and one stolen base.
Meanwhile, Oak Hill entered their tilt with Marion on Friday with six consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with seven. They walked away with a 7-3 victory over the Giants.
Noah Thompson tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out seven over 4.1 innings pitched. Those seven strikeouts gave him a new career-high.
At the plate, Landon Watts was excellent, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base. The team also got some help courtesy of Ryan Lawson, who went 2-for-4 with four RBI.
Oak Hill pushed their record up to 13-7 with the win, which was their third straight on the road. The road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.0 runs over those games. As for Eastbrook, their loss dropped their record down to 12-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Eastbrook has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Oak Hill struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Eastbrook might still be hurting after the 9-3 defeat they got from Oak Hill when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Can the Panthers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
