Fayetteville hasn't had much luck against Shelby County recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Fayetteville Wolves will venture away from home to challenge the Shelby County Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. Fayetteville's pitching crew has only allowed 3.6 runs per game this season, so Shelby County's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Things were looking good for Fayetteville after they put the first points on the board on Monday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They fell just short of Childersburg by a score of 8-6. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest defeat the Wolves have suffered against the Tigers since March 12, 2021.
Lauren Cook
| 02/24/25 vs Childersburg | 4 |
| 02/18/25 vs Thorsby | 0 |
| 02/15/25 vs Central of Coosa County | 2 |
| 02/15/25 @ Comer | 1 |
| 04/05/24 vs Reeltown | 1 |
| 03/21/24 @ Isabella | 4 |
Lauren Cook was huge no matter where she played even without the win. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over seven innings while giving up three earned (and five unearned) runs off nine hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than eight strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. She was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring four runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-4. That's the most runs she has posted since back in March of 2024.
In other batting news, Taylor Hammonds was cooking despite her team's loss, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 3-for-4. The dominant performance also gave her a new career-high in hits (three).
Meanwhile, Shelby County took care of business in their home opener (and then some) on Tuesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Comer a 10-0 shutout. The Wildcats have beaten the Tigers the last four times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Tigers has come to flipping the script.
Kloe Gallups (2026) was a standout: she scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. Kaydence Connell (2026) was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 2-for-3.
Shelby County always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .621. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Comer only posted an OBP of .316.
The loss was their first at home , dropping their record down to 3-2. As for Shelby County, their record is now 1-0.
Fayetteville suffered a grim 14-4 defeat to Shelby County in their previous meeting back in February of 2022. Can Fayetteville avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
