Ridgeview had lost five straight on the road, but on Thursday they dropped down to 6-5 to make it six. They fell just short of the Baker County Wildcats by a score of 6-5. That's two games in a row now that the Panthers have lost by just one run.
James Norton made the most of his time in the batter's box despite the final result and got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and one double.
As for Baker County, they are on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine games. That's provided a massive bump to their 8-6 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.3 runs on average over those games.
On Baker County's side, Nicholas Chowaniec made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out eight batters over 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and only one walk). Chowaniec has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. He has become a key player for Baker County: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 4-6 otherwise.
Chowaniec wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Blane Chauncey, who went 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI.
Looking ahead, Ridgeview will be playing in front of their home fans against Ribault at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. The Trojans have struggled to contain batters this season (they've allowed 9.9 runs per game on average), something the Panthers will no doubt try to take advantage of. As for Baker County, they will head out to take on Cornerstone Classical Academy at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
