Tellico Plains hasn't had much luck against Roane County recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Bears will face off against the Yellowjackets at 6:00 p.m.
Tellico Plains is headed into Thursday's match looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their fifth straight game on Tuesday. They fell 7-4 to Meigs County. That's two games in a row now that the Bears have lost by exactly three runs.
Tellico Plains got a massive performance out of Isabella Wright, who fired off two home runs while going 2-for-3. Wright also put up two RBI, which were her first of the season. Addison Joines was another key player, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with one home run.
Meanwhile, Roane County is still undefeated this season after their contest against Sweetwater on Tuesday, but Sweetwater came as close as anyone has to beating them. The Yellowjackets beat the Wildcats by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 2-1.
Sailor Presley made a splash no matter where she played. She struck out 16 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits (and only one walk). She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one earned run any time she's pitched this season. She was also big at the plate, firing off two home runs while going 2-for-3. Those two home runs gave her a new career-high.
Presley wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Rhyan Henslee, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base.
Roane County pushed their record up to 11-0 with the victory, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.6 runs on average over those games. As for Tellico Plains, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-7.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Tellico Plains hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.8 home runs per game. However, it's not like Roane County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.9 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Tellico Plains came up short against Roane County when the teams last played back in March, falling 6-1. Can the Bears avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
