The Hardee Wildcats will take on the Sebring Blue Streaks in a tournament on Thursday. Hardee's pitching crew has only allowed 2.6 runs per game this season, so Sebring's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Hardee's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Monday. They walked away with a 4-0 win over Frostproof. The victory continues a trend for the Wildcats in their matchups with the Bulldogs: they've now won eight in a row.
Not much got past Ryan Rivas, who gave up just two hits and racked up eight Ks to keep Frostproof off the board. What's more, Rivas also gave up only zero earned runs, the fewest he's had since back in April of 2024.
At the plate, Hardee's win was truly a team effort as two different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Braden Tyson, who went 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI. That double was Tyson's first of the season.
Meanwhile, everything went Sebring's way against Lake Placid on Tuesday as Sebring made off with a 10-0 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Blue Streaks.
The team relied heavily on Blayne Humphrey, who scored two runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-2. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in stolen bases. The team also got some help courtesy of Trey Holman, who went a perfect2-for-2 with one stolen base and two RBI.
Sebring always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .529. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Lake Placid only posted an OBP of .176.
Sebring now has a winning record of 2-1. As for Hardee, they now have a winning record of 3-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Hardee has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Sebring struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Hardee came out on top in a nail-biter against Sebring when the teams last played last Tuesday, sneaking past 4-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for Hardee since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
