The Kingman Academy Tigers will venture away from home to face off against the Northland Prep Academy Spartans at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Kingman Academy hasn't scored more than a single run for three games straight, a trend the team is eager to reverse.
Kingman Academy's last matchup with Wickenburg could've gone either way, but unfortunately the same can't be said for the pair's contest on Friday. The Tigers lost 14-1 to the Wranglers. The loss was just more heartbreak for the Tigers, who fell 10-8 when the teams last met back in April of 2019.
Kingman Academy saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Rilee Otto, who went 1-for-3 with one double.
Meanwhile, Northland Prep Academy beat Hopi 13-8 on Thursday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Spartans.
Blayden Cosper made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up six earned (and two unearned) runs off three hits. Those eight strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-3. He is becoming a predictor of Northland Prep Academy's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 5-2 (and 1-2 when he doesn't).
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Michael Cary, who scored three runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-4. Northland Prep Academy is undefeated when Cary posts two or more stolen bases, but 2-4 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Wyatt Massey, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4.
Northland Prep Academy kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.6 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 games they've averaged 11.6.
Northland Prep Academy pushed their record up to 6-4 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 15.0 runs over those games. As for Kingman Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-11-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Monday. Kingman Academy hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.4 home runs per game. However, it's not like Northland Prep Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.4 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Kingman Academy took their victory against Northland Prep Academy in their previous meeting back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 10-4 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Tigers since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
