The Gulf Breeze Dolphins are taking a road trip to take on the South Walton Seahawks at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Gulf Breeze 3.6, South Walton 2.4) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Gulf Breeze is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Florida's top teams: Niceville, who was ranked 17th at the time (Gulf Breeze was ranked 19th). The Dolphins took a 6-3 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Eagles on Friday. The Dolphins' defeat signaled the end of their eight-game winning streak.
Tommy Regan was cooking despite his team's loss, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with one home run and one stolen base. Nate Adams was another key player, scoring a run while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.
Meanwhile, South Walton entered their tilt with Pensacola Catholic on Friday with seven consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with eight. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Crusaders a 4-0 shutout.
Coleman Borthwick made a big impact no matter where he played. He pitched 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than one earned run in seven consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with one double.
In other pitching news, Denton Lord looked comfortable as he struck out six batters over 3.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, Hudson Quinn was excellent, going 1-for-2 with two RBI and one double. Another player making a difference was Travis Eichelberger, who scored two runs and stole two bases.
South Walton pushed their record up to 18-3 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Gulf Breeze, their loss dropped their record down to 15-5.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Saturday. Gulf Breeze hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 1 home runs per game. However, it's not like South Walton struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.5 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Gulf Breeze came out on top in a nail-biter against South Walton in their previous meeting back in February, sneaking past 4-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Dolphins since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
