Belle Vernon is on a four-game streak of home wins, while Thomas Jefferson is on a four-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Leopards will welcome the Jaguars at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Belle Vernon 3.4, Thomas Jefferson 2.2) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Belle Vernon's usually-dominant pitching crew will be looking to make up for Wednesday's struggle, when Serra Catholic hitters got past them. The Leopards came up short against the Eagles on Wednesday, falling 10-0. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Leopards have suffered since April 14th.
Thomas Jefferson came out on top against Norwin on Monday thanks in part to the team's impressive four-run second inning. The Jaguars sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-2 win over the Knights. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Jaguars have posted since April 14th.
Thomas Jefferson got a great performance from Dominic Metz as he pitched six innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. The dominant performance also gave Metz a new career-high in strikeouts (five).
At the plate, Luke Kosko was excellent, going 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and one double. That's the most hits he has posted since back in April of 2024. Josh Chalovich also deserves some recognition as he got his first hits of the season.
Thomas Jefferson was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .433. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Thomas Jefferson has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won nine of their last ten games. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-4 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.8 runs on average over those games. As for Belle Vernon, their defeat dropped their record down to 13-5.
Thomas Jefferson's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Thursday. Belle Vernon has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.3 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Thomas Jefferson, though, as they've been averaging only 0.4 strikeouts. Will Belle Vernon keep running through batters, or will the Jaguars buck the trend?
Belle Vernon took their victory against Thomas Jefferson in their previous matchup back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 13-5 score. Do the Leopards have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Jaguars turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
