The Rockingham County Cougars will challenge the Oak Grove Grizzlies on Friday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Rockingham County sitting on 22 straight victories and Oak Grove on three.
Rockingham County is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over Piedmont. The Cougars might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 19 games by nine runs or more this season.
Ava Grace Pruitt spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on three hits and racked up seven Ks. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in 14 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Macey Hardy, who went 2-for-4 with one home run and four RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Cameron Winant, who went 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Rockingham County kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their hit total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Oak Grove faced North Davidson in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. The Grizzlies narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past the Black Knights 4-3. That's two games straight that the Grizzlies have won by just one run.
Oak Grove also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Mary Peyton Hodge gave up only one earned (and two unearned) runs on three hits and racked up ten Ks.
On the hitting side, Oak Grove's victory was truly a team effort as four different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Isabelle Lawrence, who went 1-for-2 with one run and one RBI. Abby Cruz also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
Rockingham County pushed their record up to 23-1 with the win, which was their 13th straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.5 runs on average over those games. As for Oak Grove, their win bumped their record up to 19-6.
Rockingham County might still be hurting after the 9-0 defeat they got from Oak Grove when the teams last played back in March of 2024. Can the Cougars avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
