Baseball Recap: Howard Tech Comes Up Short

Howard Tech had lost seven straight at home, but on Saturday they dropped down to 1-21 to make it eight. They lost 11-0 to the East Ridge Pioneers. Unfortunately, that's the second time they've come up short against the Pioneers this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 21-11 back in March.

Howard Tech saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jaiden Boyd, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base.

As for East Ridge, the victory made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 9-12-1. Considering they have won seven games by more than six runs this season, Saturday's blowout was nothing new.

On East Ridge's side, Dylan Owens was a major factor no matter where he played. He didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out 12 over five innings pitched. Owens has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-4 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. East Ridge is 3-1 when Owens posts three or more RBI, but 6-11-1 otherwise.

In other batting news, Payton Johnson and Marshon Usher did most of the damage at the plate: Johnson got on base in all four of his plate appearances with three runs and one stolen base, while Usher got on base in all three of his plate appearances with three stolen bases and two runs. Johnson continues to improve, besting his previous run total in each of the last three games he's played. Brayden Slay was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with three stolen bases and two runs.

Coming up, Howard Tech will be playing at home against Oakwood Christian at 6:30 p.m. on Monday. The Eagles have struggled to contain batters this season (they've allowed 6.58 runs per game on average), something the Hstln Tigers will no doubt try to take advantage of. As for East Ridge, they will face off against Red Bank at 5:00 p.m. on Monday.