The Benton Academy Raiders will challenge the Briarfield Academy Rebels at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. The last five games Benton Academy has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Having struggled with nine defeats in a row dating back to last season, Benton Academy turned things around against Manchester Academy on Monday. The two teams finished up on equal footing with a 0-0 draw. The matchup marked the first time this season in which the Raiders were not able to get on the board.
Meanwhile, it was close, but on Monday Briarfield Academy sidestepped Benton Academy for a 4-3 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Rebels.
Brock Johnson spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned (and one unearned) runs on three hits and racked up nine Ks.
On the hitting side, Briarfield Academy's win was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jackson Thornton, who scored two runs while going 1-for-2. Thornton has become a key player for Briarfield Academy: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 2-4 otherwise. Ryder Jones was another, scoring a run while going 1-for-2.
Briarfield Academy's victory was their fourth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-4. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 5.8 runs. Benton Academy's draw makes their record 0-7-1 this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
