Baseball Game Preview: Staunton Storm vs. Riverheads Gladiators

Staunton is 1-9 against Riverheads since May of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Storm will challenge the Gladiators at 5:00 p.m. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Staunton took a seven-run defeat the last time they faced off against Waynesboro, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Storm had just enough and edged out the Little Giants 5-4.

Zack Hinkle was incredible, going 3-for-4 with three stolen bases and two RBI. Those RBI were his first of the season. The team also got some help courtesy of Nathan Neil, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.

Staunton was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .429. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Waynesboro only posted a batting average of .231.

Meanwhile, Riverheads got themselves on the board against Central Woodstock on Wednesday, but Central Woodstock never followed suit. They put the hurt on the Falcons with a sharp 10-0 win. The victory continues a trend for the Gladiators in their matchups with the Falcons: they've now won four in a row.

Staunton's win ended a six-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 2-4. As for Riverheads, their victory bumped their record up to 6-1.

Staunton suffered a grim 17-3 defeat to Riverheads when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Can the Storm avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.