Baseball Game Preview: Richland Bears vs. Oak Ridge Blue Jays

Bears

Runs

03/24/25 vs Cuba	7
03/22/25 @ Linn	2
03/22/25 @ Eldon	1
03/21/25 vs Newburg	18

The Richland Bears will challenge the Oak Ridge Blue Jays at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Richland is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7 runs per game this season.

Richland fought the good fight in their extra-innings match against Cuba on Monday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Wildcats by a score of 8-7. The Bears' defeat continues a trend for the team, making it three in a row.

Mason Alexander put in work while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out six over five innings pitched. Alexander was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one double, and one RBI. He is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last three games he's played.

In other batting news, London Smith made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole five bases while going 1-for-4. Bryce Pemberton also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen base of the season.

Meanwhile, Tuesday just wasn't the day for Oak Ridge's offense. They lost 6-0 to Meadow Heights on Tuesday. The Blue Jays haven't had much luck with the Panthers recently, as the team has come up short the last five times they've met.

Cohen Hahs was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched five innings while giving up just one earned (and four unearned) runs off four hits.

At the plate, Oak Ridge saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Noah Engler, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base. That's the most hits Engler has posted since back in April of 2024.

Oak Ridge's loss dropped their record down to 0-2. As for Richland, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-3.