Baseball Game Preview: McMinn Central Chargers vs. Ooltewah Owls

The McMinn Central Chargers will venture away from home to take on the Ooltewah Owls at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with McMinn Central sitting on five straight wins and Ooltewah on six.

McMinn Central took a six-run defeat the last time they faced off against Lenoir City, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Chargers skirted past the Panthers 11-10.

The team relied heavily on Devon Paxton, who got on base in four of his six plate appearances with two stolen bases, three RBI, and two runs. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March. Corbyn Frisbie was another key player, going 2-for-5 with three RBI and one double.

Ooltewah came out on top against East Hamilton on Thursday thanks in part to the team's impressive seven-run first inning. The Owls beat the Hurricanes by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 12-2. The Owls might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 12 matchups by six runs or more this season.

Ooltewah's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 17-8-1. Those road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 15.3 runs over those games. As for McMinn Central, their record is now 17-9.

McMinn Central came up short against Ooltewah in their previous meeting back in March of 2015, falling 14-11. Can the Chargers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.