Grace Christian Academy took care of business in their home opener on Friday. They walked away with an 8-5 win over the Westover Patriots. This was payback for the Cougars, who suffered a 13-6 loss the last time these two teams met.
Oathen Atkinson and Aiden Whittaker made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Atkinson pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Whittaker struck out seven batters over three innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off two hits. What's more, Atkinson gave up only zero earned runs, the fewest he's had since back in March of 2024. At the plate, Atkinson scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Whittaker scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. The dominant performance gave Atkinson a new career-high in stolen bases.
Noah Smith
| 02/21/25 vs Westover | 4 |
| 04/15/24 @ Fullington Academy | 2 |
| 03/18/24 vs St. John Paul II | 2 |
| 03/04/24 @ Crisp Academy | 2 |
| 04/18/24 vs Fullington Academy | 1 |
In other batting news, Noah Smith was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing four bases while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. Those four stolen bases gave him a new career-high.
This is the second loss in a row for Westover and nudges their season record down to 0-2.
Grace Christian Academy and Westover's offenses will be put to the test in their next games. Grace Christian Academy will take on St. John Paul II at 6:00 p.m. on Monday, a team that's only allowed one run per game. Similarly, Westover and Worth County (who has only given up 2.8 runs per game) will meet at 5:30 p.m. on Monday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
