For the first time this season, Loudoun County will have a chance to prove themselves in a conference matchup. They will be playing at home against the John Champe Knights at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Loudoun County has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the match with three straight losses, while John Champe will come in with five straight victories.
On Tuesday, Loudoun County didn't have quite enough to beat Loudoun Valley and fell 2-1.
Josh Cook was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he struck out eight batters over 4.2 innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits.
On the hitting side, Loudoun County saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Brady Shaw, who went 1-for-3 with one run.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask John Champe). They never let Park View get on the board and left with a 30-0 win on Thursday. The Knights' pitching crew has been rock solid lately; the team hasn't given up a run in their last four contests.
Red Jackson and Nick Warner were major factors while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Jackson struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). Meanwhile, Warner tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Those six strikeouts gave Jackson a new career-high. At bat, Jackson went 2-for-4 with four runs and two RBI, while Warner went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, five RBI, and three runs.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Hayden Tellman, who got on base in five of his six plate appearances with four runs, three RBI, and one double. The team also got some help courtesy of Cole Rounds-Raabe, who went 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs.
John Champe kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 21 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.2 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 games they've averaged 14.6.
John Champe's victory bumped their record up to 11-3. As for Loudoun County, they now have a losing record of 4-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Loudoun County has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like John Champe struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Loudoun County skirted past John Champe 7-5 in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Do the Captains have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Knights turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
