Acadiana Christian hasn't had much luck against Christian Home Educators Fellowship recently, but that could start to change on Saturday. The Lions will head out to face off against the Patriots at 11:30 a.m. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Acadiana Christian saw some tournament action on Friday. They came out on top against NELA Christian Homeschool by a score of 6-2. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Lions.
Jaxon Olivier spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned (and one unearned) run on four hits and racked up six Ks.
At the plate, Landon Decuir was excellent, going 1-for-2 with three stolen bases and two runs. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in February. Another player making a difference was Neal Osburn, who got on base in two of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs.
Meanwhile, two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Christian Home Educators Fellowship walked away with it. Everything went their way against the Hornets on Friday as they made off with an 18-7 win. The Patriots might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 11 contests by seven runs or more this season.
Hudson Champlin made a splash while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over 5.2 innings pitched. Champlin was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with two RBI and one run.
In other batting news, Christian Home Educators Fellowship let Matthew Steele and Aaron Taylor run wild. Steele got on base in all five of his plate appearances with four stolen bases and four runs, while Taylor went 2-for-4 with three runs, one triple, and one stolen base. Taylor is becoming a predictor of Christian Home Educators Fellowship's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 6-8 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Noah Whitehead, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Christian Home Educators Fellowship always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .575. They are a perfect 8-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Christian Home Educators Fellowship has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won eight of their last nine games. That's provided a massive bump to their 13-8 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.6 runs over those games. As for Acadiana Christian, their record is now 13-3.
Saturday's matchup will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Acadiana Christian hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .422. However, it's not like Christian Home Educators Fellowship struggles in that department as they've averaged .327. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Acadiana Christian suffered a grim 12-2 defeat to Christian Home Educators Fellowship in their previous meeting back in March. Can the Lions avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
