Independence is 2-8 against Shady Spring since May of 2022 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Patriots will venture away from home to challenge the Tigers at 5:30 p.m. Shady Spring took a loss in their last matchup and will be looking to turn the tables on Independence, who comes in off a win.
On Tuesday, Independence got the win against Bluefield by a conclusive 18-3. The Patriots might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 12 contests by six runs or more this season.
Brady Williams and Chance Moore did most of the damage at the plate: Williams got on base in all three of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, three runs, and one double, while Moore got on base in all five of his plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. That's the most runs Moore has posted over his last 14 games. Trenton Mills also deserves some recognition as he got his first hits of the season.
Independence kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 16 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Shady Spring faced Winfield in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. The Tigers fell just short of the Generals by a score of 2-1. Having soared to a lofty 11 runs in the game before, the Tigers couldn't push the score so high this time.
Shady Spring saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Noah Fox, who went 1-for-3 with one run and one double.
Independence is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 19-6 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Shady Spring, their loss dropped their record down to 19-6.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Independence has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.8 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Shady Spring struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.1 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Independence came up short against Shady Spring in their previous meeting back in April, falling 12-7. Can the Patriots avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
