The Augusta Panthers will face off against the Heritage Academy Eagles at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Augusta has struggled recently with eight defeats in a row, while Heritage Academy will arrive with three straight victories.
Monday just wasn't the day for Augusta's offense. They came up short against Pendleton County on Monday, falling 15-0. Having soared to a lofty 12 runs in the game before, the Panthers' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
Meanwhile, Heritage Academy made easy work of Dayton last Tuesday and carried off a 15-2 win. The Eagles might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven games by nine runs or more this season.
Gavin Hensley made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four). He was even better at the plate, going 2-for-5 with four RBI, one stolen base, and one run. He has become a key player for Heritage Academy: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least three RBI, but 7-8 otherwise.
In other pitching news, Austin Brown tossed a big game, tossing five innings while giving up just two earned runs off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits in four consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, Heritage Academy got a massive performance out of Bob Brown, who went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and one double. Brown is becoming a predictor of the Eagles' success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 5-1 (and 4-8 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Jacob Muse, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Heritage Academy kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 15 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.4 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 contests they've averaged 11.
The victory got Heritage Academy back to even at 9-9. As for Augusta, their loss dropped their record down to 1-15.
Augusta might still be hurting after the 14-4 defeat they got from Heritage Academy in their previous matchup back in March. Will the Panthers have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
