The Jackson City Tigers will challenge the Berea Pirates at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Berea took a loss in their last game and will be looking to turn the tables on Jackson City, who comes in off a win.
It was a proper cat-fight when Jackson City took on Lee County on Thursday. The Tigers walked away with a 9-4 victory over the Bobcats. The Tigers have beaten the Bobcats the last three times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Bobcats has come to flipping the script.
Gavan Ritchie
| 03/21/25 @ Breathitt County | 8 |
| 04/14/25 vs Wolfe County | 3 |
| 04/17/25 vs Lee County | 1 |
| 04/01/25 vs Owsley County | 1 |
Gavan Ritchie and Kannan Lovins made a big impact no matter where they played. Throwing, Ritchie pitched 4.1 innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. Meanwhile, Lovins struck out six batters over 2.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off three hits (and only one walk). Ritchie is becoming a predictor of Jackson City's success: when he allows at most three earned runs the team is 6-2 (and 2-4 when he doesn't). At the plate, Ritchie went 1-for-3 with one run and one RBI, while Lovins went 1-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Caige Ellis, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with three stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in May of 2024. Ryan Little was another key player, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Meanwhile, Berea fought the good fight in their extra-innings matchup against Bath County on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Wildcats by a score of 3-2. That's two games in a row now that the Pirates have lost by just one run.
Berea saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ethan Slone, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases. Slone is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last three games he's played. Another was Tommie Banderman, who went 2-for-5 with one run and one double.
This is the second loss in a row for Berea and nudges their season record down to 5-5. Even worse, they were so close both times: the defeats came by an average of only one runs. As for Jackson City, their win bumped their record up to 8-6.
Saturday's contest might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Jackson City has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .465. However, it's not like Berea struggles in that department as they've averaged .476. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Everything went Jackson City's way against Berea when the teams last played back in March, as Jackson City made off with a 15-5 victory. Will the Tigers repeat their success, or do the Pirates have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
