Baseball Game Preview: IMG Academy Black Ascenders vs. Carrollwood Day Patriots

The IMG Academy Black Ascenders will head out on the road to face off against the Carrollwood Day Patriots at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. IMG Academy Black will be coming into the match with an undefeated record on the line.

On Wednesday, everything went IMG Academy Black's way against Hollins as IMG Academy Black made off with a 15-5 win. The Ascenders might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five contests by eight runs or more this season.

Grayson Rodgers looked comfortable as he pitched 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits any time he's pitched this season.

Frankie Thomas

Runs

03/05/25 vs Hollins	3
03/03/25 @ Gulf Coast	2
02/28/25 @ Sunlake	1
02/25/25 vs Sunshine State Elite Academy	0
02/21/25 vs Parrish Community	3
+ 3 more games

At the plate, Charlie Messina and Frankie Thomas did most of the damage at the plate: Messina went a perfect 3-for-3 with three RBI, two runs, and one triple, while Thomas scored three runs and stole Two bases. while going 3-for-4. Thomas continues to improve, besting his previous point total in each of the last three games he's played. Aiden Choo also deserves some recognition as he hit his first triple of the season.

The home team had come away the winner the last four times Carrollwood Day and Tampa Prep had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. Carrollwood Day came out on top against Tampa Prep by a score of 4-1 on Wednesday. The Patriots haven't had any issues with the Terrapins recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive victory against them.

The team relied heavily on Christian Clarke, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, two stolen bases, and four RBI. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in hits. Another player making a difference was Julian Earle, who scored two runs while going 3-for-4.

IMG Academy Black pushed their record up to 8-0 with the win, which was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season. As for Carrollwood Day, their record is now 6-3.

IMG Academy Black took their victory against Carrollwood Day in their previous meeting back in April of 2019 by a conclusive 11-0. Will IMG Academy Black repeat their success, or does Carrollwood Day have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.