Baseball Game Preview: Croatan Cougars vs. Jacksonville Cardinals

A feisty cat fight will be fought as Croatan Cougars duke it out with Jacksonville Cardinals at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Jacksonville took a loss in their last matchup and will be looking to turn the tables on Croatan, who comes in off a win.

Croatan's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They were the clear victors by a 6-0 margin over Richlands. The result was nothing new for the Cougars, who have now won four games by six runs or more so far this season.

Owen Woodruff

Base on Balls Against

04/01/25 @ Richlands	1
03/25/25 vs West Carteret	2
03/19/25 vs Havelock	2

The result came thanks to Owen Woodruff's shutout, as he gave up just three hits and racked up seven Ks. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Harrison Thomas was incredible, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one double. That triple was his first of the season. Nathan Griffin was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-4.

Croatan hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least four strikeouts batters in three consecutive matchups.

Meanwhile, Jacksonville fell victim to J.H. Rose and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They lost 6-0 to the Rampants. The Cardinals haven't had much luck with the Rampants recently, as the team has come up short the last seven times they've met.

Jacksonville saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Cannon Smith, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base.

Jacksonville's defeat dropped their record down to 4-8. As for Croatan, their victory bumped their record up to 6-3.

Croatan was able to grind out a solid win over Jacksonville in their previous matchup back in March, winning 6-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Cougars since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.