The Socastee Braves will head out to square off against the East Clarendon Wolverines at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
On Tuesday, Socastee sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 7-6 win over Waccamaw. That's two games straight that the Braves have won by just one run.
The team relied heavily on Jace Crowther, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, two RBI, and one double. Those two stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Gavin Hartas was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask East Clarendon). They put the hurt on Marion with a sharp 18-1 victory on Tuesday. Considering the Wolverines have won 12 matchups by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Cooper Goff made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
In other pitching news, Evan Lee looked comfortable as he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than one walk in five consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, Dawson Beard was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one triple. He continues to improve, besting his previous run total in each of the last three games he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Hunter Mixon, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
East Clarendon is on a roll lately: they've won 16 of their last 18 games. That's provided a nice bump to their 18-6 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.9 runs on average over those games. As for Socastee, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 5-18.
Socastee came out on top in a nail-biter against East Clarendon in their previous meeting back in March, sneaking past 11-10. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Braves since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
