The Houston Hilltoppers are taking a road trip to challenge the West Union Eagles at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Houston is coming into the contest hot, having won their last six games.
Houston is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by a 25-0 margin over Greenwood on Tuesday. Considering the Hilltoppers have won 12 matchups by more than six runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Takoda Harrell
| 04/08/25 vs Greenwood | 3 |
| 04/04/25 @ Louisville | 1 |
| 03/25/25 @ Columbus | 1 |
| 03/24/25 vs Clinton | 1 |
| 03/01/25 vs South Pontotoc | 1 |
Takoda Harrell and Adam Smith made a big impact no matter where they played. Throwing, Harrell pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Meanwhile, Smith pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances. At bat, Harrell went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three stolen bases, and five RBI, while Smith scored three runs and stole four bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Those three stolen bases gave Harrell a new career-high.
In other batting news, Houston got a massive performance out of Gavin Smith, who went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, three RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Rob Hancock, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-2.
Houston always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .861. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Saturday just wasn't the day for West Union's offense. They came up short against East Union on Saturday, falling 7-0. Having soared to a lofty 19 runs in the game before, the Eagles' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
West Union saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Gavin Foley, who went 2-for-3 with one double.
Houston pushed their record up to 16-6 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 14.0 runs over those games. As for West Union, they now have a losing record of 10-11.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Houston has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like West Union struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.
