Baseball Game Preview: McDowell Titans vs. Erwin Warriors

The McDowell Titans will head out to take on the Erwin Warriors at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, the two teams will really light up the scoreboard.

McDowell was handed a heart-breaking two-run loss in their last match, but they sure didn't let that happen against Owen on Wednesday. McDowell blew past Owen 11-1. The Titans might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five games by six runs or more this season.

Hayden Shelton

Runs Batted In (Career)

03/26/25 vs Owen	2
03/21/25 @ North Buncombe	1
02/28/25 @ Owen	1
04/15/24 @ Owen	1
02/29/24 vs Mountain Heritage	1

Hayden Shelton made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over six innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and not a single walk). He also tossed no walks, which is notable because McDowell is 3-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 3-5 otherwise. Shelton was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-4. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in RBI (two).

In other batting news, Kyson Rinnert was a standout: he scored two runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April of 2024. Zack Woody was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-3.

McDowell was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .448. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in four consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Erwin got their first taste of in-conference action on Tuesday and they started things off strong. They skirted past McDowell 11-9. The win continues a trend for the Warriors in their matchups with the Titans: they've now won three in a row.

Erwin's victory bumped their record up to 4-6. As for McDowell, the win got them back to even at 6-6.

McDowell couldn't quite finish off Erwin when the teams last played on Tuesday and fell 11-9. Can McDowell avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.