Port St. Joe is preparing for their first district matchup of the season on Monday. They will head out on the road to take on the Franklin County Seahawks at 7:00 p.m. The two teams are strolling into their contests after big wins in their previous games.
Port St. Joe barely beat Vernon the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. Port St. Joe's pitchers stepped up to hand Vernon a 15-0 shutout on Friday. The Tiger Sharks haven't had any issues with the Yellowjackets recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive victory against them.
Christina Clayton made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). Clayton was also big at the plate, going a perfect 1-for-1 with one stolen base and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on KK McNair, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-2. Addy Silcox was another key player, going 2-for-4 with one triple, one stolen base, and one run.
Port St. Joe always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .643. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Vernon only posted an OBP of .083.
Meanwhile, Franklin County waltzed into their game on Friday with two straight wins... but they left with three. Everything went their way against the Bulldogs as they made off with a 13-1 win. The Seahawks might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matchups by nine runs or more this season.
Like Port St. Joe, Franklin County also got a great game from a two-way player: Sarah Ham. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out eight over five innings pitched. Ham has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts any time she's pitched this season. She was also solid in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-2.
In other batting news, Peyton Jones was incredible, firing off two home runs and five RBI while going 3-for-3. Shasta Butler also deserves some recognition as she hit her first triple of the season.
Franklin County pushed their record up to 4-1 with the victory, which was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.4 runs over those games. As for Port St. Joe, their record is now 3-0.
Both Port St. Joe and Franklin County just can't seem to miss. Port St. Joe has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9 hits per game. However, it's not like Franklin County struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 4 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Port St. Joe came out on top in a nail-biter against Franklin County when the teams last played back in April of 2024, sneaking past 3-1. Will Port St. Joe repeat their success, or does Franklin County have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
