Baseball Preview: Hoover Huskies vs. Charleston Catholic Irish
Hoover and Charleston Catholic are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2016, but likely not for long. The Hoover Huskies will be playing at home against the Charleston Catholic Irish at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Hoover is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.7 runs per game this season.
Hoover is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of West Virginia's top teams: Sissonville, who was ranked 20th in their home state at the time (Hoover was ranked 21st). Hoover fell just short of Sissonville by a score of 8-7 on Tuesday. Hoover's defeat continues an unfortunate trend for the team, making it three in a row.
Riley Johnson put in work while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he tossed 5.2 innings while giving up just one earned (and four unearned) runs off four hits. Johnson has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive pitching appearances. Johnson was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and a double.
In other batting news, Jaylen Symns and Braydon Bounds stepped up to the plate in a big way. Symns scored two runs and stole four bases while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances, while Bounds scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Charleston Catholic can now show off nine landslide victories after their most recent game on Tuesday. They were the clear victor by a 17-2 margin over Midland Trail. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Charleston Catholic.
Hoover's loss dropped their record down to 11-7. As for Charleston Catholic, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 11-2 record this season.
Hoover might still be hurting after the 12-3 defeat they got from Charleston Catholic when the teams last played back in March. Will Hoover 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.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
