Baseball Game Preview: Garden Spot Spartans vs. Reading Red KNights

The Garden Spot Spartans will head out on the road to face off against the Reading Red KNights at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Reading took a loss in their last match and will be looking to turn the tables on Garden Spot, who comes in off a win.

On Wednesday, Garden Spot was able to grind out a solid win over Cocalico, taking the game 8-3. The Spartans haven't had any issues with the Eagles recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.

Madix Bracken

Batters Struck Out

04/16/25 vs Cocalico	6
04/09/25 vs Eastern Lebanon County	2
05/06/24 vs Donegal	1
04/29/24 vs Octorara Area	3
04/22/24 @ Octorara Area	9

Madix Bracken made a splash while hitting and pitching. He struck out six batters over six innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off nine hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in April of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.

Bracken wasn't the only one making solid contact as seven players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Jake Speers, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2. Garden Spot is undefeated when Speers posts two or more runs, but 2-7 otherwise. Brody Torrance was another, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.

Meanwhile, Reading came up short against Fleetwood on Monday and fell 8-4. The loss continues a trend for the Red KNights in their meetings with the Tigers: they've now lost six in a row.

Reading's defeat dropped their record down to 3-9. As for Garden Spot, their win bumped their record up to 5-7.

Garden Spot took their victory against Reading in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 by a conclusive 11-1 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Spartans since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.