The Randolph School Raiders will challenge the Grissom Tigers at 2:00 p.m. on Monday. Randolph School has given up an average of 8.3 runs per game this season, so hopefully the team got some pitching drills in this week.
Randolph School came into their game last Friday off a hard-fought close win, but unfortunately suffered a serious change of fortune. They lost 14-4 to Decatur Heritage Christian Academy. The Raiders haven't had much luck with the Eagles recently, as the team has come up short the last six times they've met.
Randolph School saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jaxton Bennett, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 4-for-4. That stolen base was Bennett's first of the season. Jackson Weglage was another, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Grissom fought the good fight in their extra-innings contest against Hueytown on Saturday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Golden Gophers by a score of 8-6. The Tigers just can't catch a break and have now endured four losses in a row.
Charlie Cassingham was huge no matter where he played even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off two hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 5-for-5. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in hits.
In other batting news, Zach Shipp made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Even though they lost, Grissom hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most four strikeouts in three consecutive matches.
Grissom's record now sits at 8-5. As for Randolph School, they now have a losing record of 3-4.
Grissom's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Randolph School hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .321. It's a different story for Grissom, though, as they've only averaged .243. Will they be able to contain Randolph School's hitters?
Randolph School might still be hurting after the 20-10 defeat they got from Grissom in their previous meeting back in April of 2024. Can Randolph School avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
