The Thornwell Saints will head out on the road to take on the Carolina Academy Trojans at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
Having struggled with 11 losses in a row dating back to last season, Thornwell turned things around against Berea on Saturday. They came out on top against the Bulldogs by a score of 14-9.
Bryce English was incredible, going 2-for-4 with five RBI, two doubles, and one run. Zach Crowe was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing Two bases. while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Carolina Academy made easy work of Southside on Tuesday and carried off a 15-5 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Trojans.
Jayden Barton was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out ten batters over four innings while giving up just one earned (and four unearned) runs off three hits. What's more, he gave up only two walks, the fewest he's had since back in March of 2024. He was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-4. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in RBI (three).
In other batting news, Aidan Alston and Jayce Thompson did most of the damage at the plate: Alston scored two runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Thompson scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Those three runs gave Thompson a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Stelios Karambasis, who scored a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Carolina Academy always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .677. That was just more of the same: they've now posted an OBP of .517 or higher every time they've taken the field this season.
The victory got Thornwell back to even at 1-1. As for Carolina Academy, they now have a winning record of 2-1.
Thornwell came out on top in a nail-biter against Carolina Academy when the teams last played back in February of 2024, sneaking past 9-7. Will Thornwell repeat their success, or does Carolina Academy have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
