First Coast is 1-6 against Oakleaf since February of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Monday. The First Coast Buccaneers will square off against the Oakleaf Knights at 7:00 p.m. The two teams have allowed few runs on average, (First Coast: 3, Oakleaf: 3.5) so any runs scored will be well earned.
First Coast will head into Thursday's match on the come-up: they were handed a seven-point loss in their previous outing, but they didn't let that bad energy affect their game against Beachside on Thursday. First Coast had just enough and edged Beachside out 4-2.
Ezekiel Ansley was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and only one hit while striking out nine over six innings pitched. Ansley has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive pitching appearances. Ansley was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-2 with a stolen base and two RBI.
In other batting news, Robert Bryson was excellent, scoring a run and stealing three bases while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Hunter Carns, who went 1-for-4 with a home run.
Meanwhile, Oakleaf had already won five in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 5.6 runs), and they went ahead and made it six on Thursday. They never let the Saints onto the board and left with a 2-0 win.
Joel Kirk tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and only two hits while striking out six over 4.1 innings pitched.
At the plate, Oakleaf's victory was truly a team effort as four different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was JP Espinosa, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-2.
First Coast has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 15-9 record this season. As for Oakleaf, they pushed their record up to 16-8 with that win, which was their fourth straight at home.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. First Coast has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Oakleaf struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.8. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
First Coast couldn't quite finish off Oakleaf when the teams last played back in May of 2023 and fell 12-10. Can First Coast avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
