Northview Academy has enjoyed a three-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will challenge the Cocke County Fighting Cocks at 5:30 p.m. on Friday.
Northview Academy will head into Thursday's matchup ready to turn things around: they couldn't quite beat Gatlinburg-Pittman on Thursday but the two-point margin was a huge improvement compared to the 11-point loss they were dealt on Tuesday. Northview Academy fell just short of Gatlinburg-Pittman by a score of 9-7. Northview Academy has struggled against Gatlinburg-Pittman recently, as their contest on Thursday was their seventh consecutive lost matchup.
Baylee Stewart spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered five earned (and four unearned) runs on ten hits and racked up six Ks.
On the hitting side, Abigail Doty was cooking despite her team's loss, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4. Lexie Webber was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 3-for-4.
Meanwhile, Cocke County had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 11.5 runs), and they went ahead and made it three on Thursday. They walked away with an 8-3 win over the Green Hornets.
Cocke County also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Hailee Hartsell gave up just two earned (and one unearned) runs on nine hits. Hartsell has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Adisen Mcnealy was incredible, scoring a run while going 4-for-4. Another player making a difference was Shakyra Reed, who scored a run and stole a base while going 3-for-4.
Northview Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 5-9. As for Cocke County, their victory was their tenth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 19-6.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Northview Academy has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.1 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Cocke County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.5. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Northview Academy suffered a grim 13-2 defeat to Cocke County in their previous matchup on Tuesday. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Hartsell, who struck out nine batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits (and not a single walk). Now that Northview Academy knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
