Ashe County is 1-9 against Watauga since March of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Huskies are taking a road trip to square off against the Pioneers at 6:30 p.m. Ashe County is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.3 runs per game this season.
Ashe County is headed into Thursday's matchup looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Tuesday. They took a 13-10 hit to the loss column at the hands of South Caldwell.
Ashe County saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kye Pennington, who scored two runs while going 2-for-4. Drew Cheek was another, scoring a run while going 1-for-4.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last game, Watauga made sure to put some runs up on the board against Freedom on Tuesday. The Pioneers put the hurt on the Patriots with a sharp 11-1 win. The victory continues a trend for the Pioneers in their matchups with the Patriots: they've now won seven in a row.
Everett Gryder tossed a big game, tossing five innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. He also tossed a walk, which is notable because Watauga is undefeated when he allows at most one walk, but 6-11 otherwise.
On the hitting side, Evan Burroughs was a standout: he went 3-for-4 with three runs, one triple, and two RBI. That's the most runs he has posted since back in February. Maddox Greene also deserves some recognition as he hit his first triple of the season.
Watauga always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .600. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Freedom only posted an OBP of .235.
Watauga's record is now 9-11. As for Ashe County, they now have a losing record of 9-10.
Both the two teams just can't seem to miss. Ashe County has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.1 hits per game. However, it's not like Watauga struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 5.6 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Ashe County couldn't quite finish off Watauga in their previous meeting two weeks ago and fell 2-0. Can the Huskies avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
