Academy for Academic Excellence is 9-1 against Silver Valley since April of 2018 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Tuesday. The Knights will welcome the Trojans at 3:15 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Academy for Academic Excellence has five straight victories, Silver Valley has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
On Friday, Academy for Academic Excellence made easy work of Victor Valley Christian and carried off a 10-1 win. Considering the Knights have won six games by more than six runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Bryson Lilly
| 04/15/25 @ Academy of Careers & Exploration | 2 |
| 04/25/25 vs Victor Valley Christian | 1 |
Noah Knecht and Bryson Lilly made a splash while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Knecht didn't allow a single earned run over five innings pitched. Meanwhile, Lilly pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Academy for Academic Excellence is undefeated when Lilly allows two or fewer hits, but 6-9 otherwise. At the plate, Knecht earned two runs and two stolen bases, while Lilly got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs. Knecht has been hot, having posted at least one stolen base the last six times he's played.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Gavin Ripley, who went 2-for-3 with four RBI, one stolen base, and one run. He has become a key player for Academy for Academic Excellence: the team is undefeated when he posts at least three RBI, but 6-9 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Aiden Carmona, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
Meanwhile, Silver Valley came up short against Academy of Careers & Exploration on Friday, falling 13-2.
Silver Valley saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Mason Melcher, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
Academy for Academic Excellence's victory was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-9. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.8 runs over those games. As for Silver Valley, their loss dropped their record down to 5-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Academy for Academic Excellence has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Silver Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.9 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Academy for Academic Excellence was able to grind out a solid victory over Silver Valley in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, winning 6-1. Do the Knights have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Trojans turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
