Union Pines has gone 9-1 against Western Harnett recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Monday. The Vikings will welcome the Eagles at 6:00 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Union Pines has three straight victories, Western Harnett has four straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Union Pines will bounce into Monday's game after beating Lee County, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. The Vikings blew past the Yellow Jackets 11-1 on Thursday. Considering the Vikings have won eight matchups by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Dylan Benedict
| 04/23/26 vs Lee County | 3 |
| 04/16/26 @ Purnell Swett | 2 |
| 03/30/26 vs Montgomery Central | 2 |
| 03/20/26 @ Harnett Central | 2 |
| 03/10/26 @ South Johnston | 2 |
Dylan Benedict made a big impact no matter where he played. He struck out ten batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits (and only one walk). He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't tossed less than eight strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBI. Those three hits gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Union Pines got a big performance out of Fletcher Thompson, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI and one triple. Those three RBI gave Thompson a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Brodie Lyczkowski, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with three stolen bases.
Union Pines was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .536. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Lee County only posted a batting average of .176.
Meanwhile, Western Harnett fell victim to West Johnston and their airtight pitching crew on Friday. They lost 10-0 to the Wildcats.
Western Harnett's defeat dropped their record down to 5-18. As for Union Pines, their win bumped their record up to 16-8.
Western Harnett's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Union Pines hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .317. It's a different story for Western Harnett, though, as they've only averaged .236. Will they be able to contain Union Pines' hitters?
Union Pines was able to grind out a solid victory over Western Harnett in their previous matchup on April 2nd, winning 5-2. Will the Vikings repeat their success, or do the Eagles have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
