Miller County is on a five-game streak of home wins, while Cottondale is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Pirates will welcome the Hornets at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
If Miller County beats Cottondale with nine runs on Friday, it's going to be the squad's new lucky number: they've won their past two matchups with that exact score. The Pirates walked away with a 9-5 victory over Cairo on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Cottondale won against Seminole County on Monday with 12 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Thursday. The Hornets put the hurt on Liberty County with a sharp 12-2 win.
Lane Johnson made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out nine batters over five innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits. Johnson was also big at the plate, going a perfect 5-for-5 with one home run, five RBI, and one double. He is becoming a predictor of Cottondale's success: when he posts at least one home run the team is undefeated (and 8-11 when he doesn't).
In other batting news, Conner Barton and Jaydon Gray did most of the damage at the plate: Barton got on base in four of his five plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI, while Gray went a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBI, one run, and one double. Cottondale is 4-1 when Gray posts three or more hits, but 7-10 otherwise. Tyler Jones was another key player, going 1-for-4 with one triple, one run, and one RBI.
Cottondale kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in six consecutive games.
The victory got Cottondale back to even at 11-11. As for Miller County, their win bumped their record up to 16-9.
Miller County couldn't quite get it done against Cottondale when the teams last played back in March as they fell 8-5. Will the Pirates have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
