Baseball Game Preview: East Columbus Gators vs. Pender Patriots

East Columbus is a perfect 9-0 against Pender since March of 2018 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The East Columbus Gators will welcome the Pender Patriots at 7:00 p.m. One thing working in East Columbus' favor is that they have posted at least ten runs in their last three games.

East Columbus' pitching crew heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Pender as East Columbus made off with a 13-0 win. The victory continues a trend for the Gators in their matchups with the Patriots: they've now won nine in a row.

Gauge Simmons

Batters Struck Out (Career)

03/12/25 @ Pender	9
02/24/25 @ Red Springs	8
03/08/24 vs Red Springs	8
04/30/24 vs West Columbus	7
04/15/24 @ Pender	7

Gauge Simmons made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out nine over six innings pitched. Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in all five of his plate appearances with two RBI.

In other batting news, Khari Bowen was a standout: he scored four runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. Bowen is crushing it when it comes to stolen bases: he's snagged at least one every time he's taken the field this season. Braylon Waddell was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-5.

East Columbus hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Pender struck out nine times.

East Columbus' win bumped their record up to 3-1. As for Pender, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-2.

Pender's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: East Columbus hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .317. It's a different story for Pender, though, as they've only averaged .196. Will they be able to contain East Columbus' hitters? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.