Baseball Game Preview: Hardaway Hawks vs. Dougherty Trojans

The Hardaway Hawks will be defending their home field for the first time this season when they go up against the Dougherty Trojans at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their games after big wins in their previous games.

On Thursday, Hardaway got the win against Chattahoochee County by a conclusive 14-1. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Hawks.

Hardaway got a massive performance out of Tristan Jackson, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three stolen bases, one triple, and one run. That's the most stolen bases Jackson has posted since back in February of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Nick Hudson, who scored two runs and stole four bases while going 1-for-1.

Hardaway always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .688. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Chattahoochee County only posted an OBP of .286.

Meanwhile, Dougherty took care of business in their home opener (and then some) on Tuesday. They put the hurt on Sumter County with a sharp 20-3 victory. The win continues a trend for the Trojans in their matchups with the Panthers: they've now won three in a row.

Camarien Wimberly was a standout: he scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Braylen Still was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-2.

Hardaway suffered a grim 15-5 defeat to Dougherty in their previous matchup back in April of 2024. Can Hardaway avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.