The Columbus Grove Bulldogs will head out to take on the Patrick Henry Patriots at 5:00 p.m. on Friday.
Columbus Grove is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 19 runs last Tuesday, they were much more limited against Jefferson on Thursday. They lost 11-1 to the Wildcats. The loss continues a trend for the Bulldogs in their meetings with the Wildcats: they've now lost four in a row.
Columbus Grove saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Breanna Hoffman, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, Patrick Henry strolled into their game on Thursday with a perfect record and they left with the same. Everything went their way against North Baltimore as they made off with a 14-4 victory. Considering the Patriots have won four matches by more than nine runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
The team relied heavily on Kasey Nelson, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. Elisiana Wyandt was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
Patrick Henry always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .515. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as North Baltimore only posted an OBP of .360.
Patrick Henry's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-0. The road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 18.2 runs over those games. As for Columbus Grove, their defeat was their first of the season and makes their record 2-1.
Patrick Henry's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Columbus Grove has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.3 hits per game. It's a different story for Patrick Henry, though, as they've been averaging 9.2 hits. Given Columbus Grove's sizable advantage in that area, the Patriots will need to find a way to close that gap.
Columbus Grove was able to grind out a solid win over Patrick Henry in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, winning 10-7. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bulldogs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
