Aucilla Christian is 1-9 against Madison County since March of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Warriors will square off against the Cowboys at 6:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Aucilla Christian is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over Hamilton County. The Warriors haven't had any issues with the Trojans recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive victory against them.
Josh Agner tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run over five innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up a single earned run in six consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Aucilla Christian got a big performance out of Dalton Demott, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-2. The team also got some help courtesy of Shaw Lundy, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-2.
Aucilla Christian always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .519. That was just more of the same: they've now posted an OBP of .500 or higher in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Madison County). Everything went their way against Jefferson County on Tuesday as they made off with a 21-6 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Cowboys.
Alden Richie was a standout: he got on base in three of his five plate appearances with four RBI, two runs, and one double. Madison County is undefeated when Richie posts two or more runs, but 9-11 otherwise. Brett Harper also deserves some recognition as he brought in his first RBI of the season.
Aucilla Christian's record now sits at 14-8. As for Madison County, their record is now 13-11.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Aucilla Christian has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Madison County struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.4 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Aucilla Christian might still be hurting after the 9-1 defeat they got from Madison County in their previous matchup back in March. Can the Warriors avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
