The Vancleave Bulldogs will take on the Forrest County Agricultural Aggies at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Vancleave will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak dating back to last season.
On Friday, Vancleave was able to grind out a solid victory over St. Martin, taking the game 7-3. That's two games straight that the Bulldogs have won by exactly four runs.
Aiden English looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits.
Max Bates
| 02/21/25 @ St. Martin | 3 |
| 02/18/25 vs St. Stanislaus | 2 |
| 02/14/25 vs Harrison Central | 2 |
| 04/16/24 vs Laurel | 2 |
| 04/06/24 @ Wayne County | 2 |
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Max Bates, who scored three runs while going 3-for-4. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Aidan Tapp, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Forrest County Agricultural didn't have quite enough to beat Hattiesburg on Friday and fell 6-4.
Forrest County Agricultural also got a good showing from Trip Carpenter, who pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Carpenter has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one hit any time he's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Forrest County Agricultural saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ethan Norman, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-4. Norman also stolen a stolen base, marking his first of the season.
Vancleave pushed their record up to 3-0 with the win, which was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.7 runs over those games. As for Forrest County Agricultural, their loss dropped their record down to 2-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Vancleave has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Forrest County Agricultural struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Vancleave took their victory against Forrest County Agricultural when the teams last played back in February of 2024 by a conclusive 12-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for Vancleave since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
