Baseball Game Preview: McDowell Titans vs. Enka Jets

The McDowell Titans will head out to square off against the Enka Jets at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. McDowell is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.2 runs per game this season.

McDowell was handed a heart-breaking two-run defeat in their last match, but they sure didn't let that happen against Owen on Wednesday. McDowell put the hurt on Owen with a sharp 11-1 victory. The result was nothing new for the Titans, who have now won five games by six runs or more so far this season.

Hayden Shelton

Hits (Career)

03/26/25 vs Owen	2
03/25/25 vs Erwin	1
03/21/25 @ North Buncombe	1
04/15/24 @ Owen	1
04/01/24 vs Maiden	1

Hayden Shelton made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over six innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and not a single walk). McDowell is 2-1 when Shelton allowsone or fewer earned runs, but 4-5 otherwise. Shelton was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-4. Those two hits gave him a new career-high.

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. The team also got some help courtesy of Zack Woody, who scored a run and stole 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, there's no place like home for Enka, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. They came out on top against Brevard by a score of 6-2 on Wednesday. The win was a breath of fresh air for the Jets as it put an end to their four-game losing streak.

The team relied heavily on Ty Aycock, who went 3-for-4 with one triple, two RBI, and one double. That triple was his first of the season. Tanner Stewart was another key player, scoring a run while going 3-for-3.

Enka's record is now 3-7. As for McDowell, their victory ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 6-6.