The Hickory Hornets are taking a road trip to take on the Sharon Tigers at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Hickory sitting on four straight wins and Sharon on 14.
Hickory is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They never let Grove City get on the board and left with a 4-0 victory. Give the Hornets' pitching crew some credit: that's the team's third straight shutout.
The result came thanks to AJ Jarzab's shutout, as she gave up just a hit and racked up 12 Ks. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than one walk in 13 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Hickory's win was truly a team effort as four different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Emma Johnston, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one run. Another was Kaylie Gill, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with two runs.
Fans were treated to a battle of the Tigers on Tuesday. Sharon was the clear victor by a 12-0 margin over Fairview. Sharon might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 15 games by eight runs or more this season.
Madelyn Vogan made a splash while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out 15 over five innings pitched. Vogan was also big at the plate, going a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs.
In other batting news, Marley Bundrant was excellent, going 1-for-2 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. Dalaini Bayer was another key player, going 1-for-2 with two runs and one RBI.
Hickory's victory was their seventh straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-9. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.3 runs over those games. As for Sharon, their record is now 18-1.
Hickory came up short against Sharon when the teams last played two weeks ago, falling 6-3. Can the Hornets avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
