Patrick Henry hasn't had much luck against Rural Retreat recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Rebels are taking a road trip to square off against the Indians at 5:00 p.m.
Patrick Henry fought the good fight in their extra-innings game against Honaker on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They took a 10-5 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Tigers. Rebels fans who chose to attend the game sure picked the wrong one: it was the first time the team's lost against the Tigers since on Friday.
Aidan Monahan put in work while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over 5.2 innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up a single earned run in three consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with one stolen base and one run.
In other batting news, Kolby Hicks was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, one double, and one RBI. Waylon Daniels was another key player, getting on base in three of his five plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Rural Retreat). They were the clear victors by a 17-2 margin over Holston on Thursday. With that win, the Indians brought their scoring average up to 6.1 runs per game.
Like Patrick Henry, Rural Retreat also got a great game from a two-way player: Trever Shelton. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run over four innings pitched. Shelton also tossed no walks, which is notable because Rural Retreat is 2-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 6-7-1 otherwise. Shelton was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with three runs and one stolen base. That's the most runs he has posted since back in March.
In other batting news, Rural Retreat got a massive performance out of Jay Snavely, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with five stolen bases, three runs, and one double. Snavely is becoming a predictor of the Indians' success: when he posts at least three hits the team is undefeated (and 5-8-1 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Brody Childers, who went 3-for-5 with four stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI.
Rural Retreat always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .595. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
This is the second loss in a row for Patrick Henry and nudges their season record down to 8-10-1. As for Rural Retreat, the victory got them back to even at 8-8-1.
Patrick Henry was able to grind out a solid win over Rural Retreat in their previous meeting back in April, winning 7-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Rebels since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
