Baseball Game Preview: Elkins Elks vs. Booneville Bearcats

The Elkins Elks will square off against the Booneville Bearcats at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Elkins is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 15 runs on Monday, they were much more limited against Springdale on Tuesday. They lost 9-1 to the Bulldogs. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest defeat the Elks have suffered since March 16, 2024.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Booneville, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Monday. They put the hurt on Paris with a sharp 11-5 win on Tuesday. The result was nothing new for the Bearcats, who have now won seven games by six runs or more so far this season.

Booneville's victory was their 20th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 9-5. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.7 runs over those games. As for Elkins, their loss dropped their record down to 11-5.

Elkins came out on top in a nail-biter against Booneville in their previous matchup back in May of 2023, sneaking past 14-13. Will the Elks repeat their success, or do the Bearcats have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.