The Vanguard Knights will head out on the road to square off against the Citrus Hurricanes at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Vanguard is coming into the contest hot, having won their last four games.
While Vanguard's win against Lake Weir wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Knights skirted past the Hurricanes 10-8.
Mason Tidwell looked comfortable as he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up a single hit any time he's pitched this season.
Spencer Payne
| 03/13/26 vs Lake Weir | 5 |
| 02/27/26 @ Newberry | 4 |
| 03/02/26 @ Lake Weir | 3 |
| 02/12/26 vs Dunnellon | 2 |
| 02/20/26 vs Forest | 1 |
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Spencer Payne, who went 3-for-4 with five RBI, one triple, and one run. Those five RBI gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Davin Robinson, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Vanguard was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .407. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Citrus' good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They fell just short of The Villages Charter by a score of 3-1. Having soared to a lofty 17 runs in the game before, the Hurricanes couldn't push the score so high this time.
Citrus saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Weston Brannen, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base.
Citrus' loss dropped their record down to 3-6. As for Vanguard, their record is now 11-1.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Vanguard has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.1 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Citrus struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.4 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Vanguard was able to grind out a solid victory over Citrus in their previous meeting back in February, winning 4-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Knights since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
