Baseball Game Preview: Montpelier Locomotives vs. Ayersville Pilots

The Montpelier Locomotives will face off against the Ayersville Pilots at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Montpelier is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 9 runs per game this season.

Ayersville will challenge a team with plenty of momentum: Montpelier extended their winning streak to three on Wednesday. The Locomotives never let Pettisville get on the board and left with an 8-0 win. Considering the Locomotives have won five games by more than five runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.

Jaxon Stahler

Stolen Base (Career)

05/07/25 @ Pettisville	3
04/15/25 @ Stryker	2
05/02/25 vs North Central	1
04/29/25 @ Holgate	1
04/21/25 vs Fairview	1

Jaxon Stahler and Griffin Cooley did most of the damage at the plate: Stahler went 1-for-3 with three stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI, while Cooley got on base in two of his four plate appearances with four stolen bases and two runs. Those three stolen bases gave Stahler a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Hayden Sharps, who got on base in two of his four plate appearances with three stolen bases and two runs.

Meanwhile, Ayersville came up short against Fort Jennings on Monday and fell 6-3. That's two games in a row now that the Pilots have lost by exactly three runs.

Ayersville has been struggling recently as they've lost seven of their last eight matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 5-11 record this season. As for Montpelier, their victory bumped their record up to 12-2.

Montpelier came out on top in a nail-biter against Ayersville in their previous matchup back in May of 2021, sneaking past 8-7. Will the Locomotives repeat their success, or do the Pilots have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.