Baseball Recap: Avery County Comes Up Short

Avery County extended their losing streak to three on Tuesday, dropping them down to 6-10. They came up short against the Polk County Wolverines, falling 13-3. The result was an unpleasant reminder to the Vikings of the 10-0 loss they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture back in May of 2021.

Hayden Forbes

Stolen Base

04/21/26 vs Polk County	2
04/07/26 vs Unaka	2
03/26/26 @ Cloudland	2
04/14/26 @ Hendersonville	1
03/31/26 @ Mountain Heritage	1
+ 2 more games

Avery County saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Hayden Forbes, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and one run. The Vikings are 2-1 when Forbes posts two or more stolen bases, but 4-9 otherwise.

As for Polk County, their win bumped their record up to 13-7. Considering they have won six contests by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.

On Polk County's side, Noah Harden made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off three hits. That's the most strikeouts Harden has posted since back in March. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.

In other batting news, Alex Perry was a standout: he got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Nate Fagan, who went 1-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.

Looking ahead, Avery County will venture away from home to face off against Owen at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The Vikings' pitchers better be ready for this one: the Warhorses have averaged an impressive 6.4 runs per game this season. As for Polk County, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Burns at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The Bulldogs will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each matchup than the last.