The Grove City Eagles will head out on the road to challenge the Clarion Area Bobcats at 4:15 p.m. on Wednesday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Grove City took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Monday. They blew past Franklin 11-0. Considering the Eagles' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
The team relied heavily on Jaxen Pyle, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with three RBI, two runs, and one double. Those two runs gave him a new career-high. Gavin Gilmore was another key player, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI.
Grove City always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .560. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Clarion Area came out on top against Greenville on Tuesday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run first inning. The Bobcats walked away with a 6-3 victory over the Trojans. The win was familiar territory for the Bobcats, who have now won three matchups in a row.
Derek Smail made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He struck out seven batters over 5.2 innings while giving up three earned runs off three hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two runs. Clarion Area is undefeated when Smail posts two or more runs, but 4-5 otherwise.
In other batting news, Hayden Weber was excellent, going 3-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Clarion Area pushed their record up to 12-5 with the victory, which was their sixth straight on the road. Those road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.5 runs over those games. As for Grove City, their victory ended a five-game drought at home and bumped them up to 4-13.
Grove City skirted past Clarion Area 9-8 in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Eagles since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
