Baseball Game Preview: Walnut Grove Warriors vs. East Hall Vikings

The Walnut Grove Warriors will head out on the road to face off against the East Hall Vikings at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.

Walnut Grove is headed out to face East Hall after opening their season at home and giving their fans just what they were looking for. Walnut Grove was the clear victors by an 11-3 margin over Monroe Area on Monday. The Warriors haven't had any issues with the Purple Hurricanes recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive victory against them.

Jarrod Cook and Branson Blalock were a major factor no matter where they played. Throwing, Cook pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Meanwhile, Blalock didn't allow a single earned run and only a hit while striking out seven over four innings pitched. What's more, he also gave up only zero earned runs, the fewest he's had since back in March of 2024. At bat, Cook scored a run while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances, while Blalock scored two runs while going 2-for-5. Those two runs gave Blalock a new career-high.

Sam Martell

Runs Batted In (Career)

02/10/25 vs Monroe Area	5
02/17/24 vs Kennesaw Mountain	3
03/29/24 @ Madison County	2
04/05/24 vs North Oconee	1
03/20/24 @ Barrow Arts and Sciences Academy	1

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Sam Martell, who got on base in all five of his plate appearances with one home run and five RBI. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Gray Jones, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.

Walnut Grove always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .561. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Monroe Area only posted an OBP of .185.

Meanwhile, East Hall had to kick off their season on the road on Monday, but they showed no ill effects. They put the hurt on South Gwinnett with a sharp 19-5 win.

Walnut Grove took their victory against East Hall when the teams last played back in March of 2024 by a conclusive 16-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for Walnut Grove since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.