The Loyd Star Hornets will face off against the Lawrence County Cougars at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Loyd Star comes in on four and Lawrence County on six.
Lawrence County's hitters are going to have their work cut out for them on Saturday: Loyd Star hadn't allowed a single run the last three times they've hit the field. The Hornets' pitcher stepped up to hand Amite County a 16-0 shutout on Thursday.
Eli Thornton
| 04/03/25 @ Amite County | 3 |
| 04/01/25 vs Amite County | 3 |
| 04/03/25 @ Amite County | 2 |
| 03/20/25 vs St. Andrew's Episcopal | 2 |
| 03/03/25 @ Wesson | 2 |
| + 4 more games |
Eli Thornton was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while going 3-for-3. He is becoming a predictor of Loyd Star's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 6-8 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Jordyn Kees, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run and two RBI.
Loyd Star was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .522. The last time their batting average was this high was back in April of 2024.
Meanwhile, Lawrence County won against Richland on Tuesday with six runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Friday. The Cougars sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-5 win over McComb. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Cougars have posted since April 9, 2024.
Justin Walker tossed a big game, striking out 12 batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and four unearned) runs off two hits. Those 12 strikeouts gave him a new career-high.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Bryce Prestridge, who scored a run while going 1-for-3. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in RBI (three). Grey Boyd was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Lawrence County pushed their record up to 10-8 with the win, which was their fourth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.8 runs on average over those games. As for Loyd Star, their win bumped their record up to 11-8.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Loyd Star has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.8 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Lawrence County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.3 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Loyd Star skirted past Lawrence County 5-3 in their previous meeting back in March. Will the Hornets repeat their success, or do the Cougars have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
