The Middleburg Broncos will face off against the Palatka Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
While Middleburg didn't have the best season last year (they finished 8-15), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They had just enough and edged out Yulee 4-2.
Middleburg's win was truly a team effort as seven different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Johnny De Antonis, who went 2-for-3 with two doubles, one stolen base, and two RBI. Liam Cooper also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Palatka). They blew past P.K. Yonge 11-4 on Wednesday. The result was nothing new for the Panthers, who have now won three matches by six runs or more so far this season.
Paxton Sweat made a big impact no matter where he played. He struck out ten batters over 5.1 innings while giving up four earned runs off four hits. Sweat was also big at the plate, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with three RBI and one stolen base.
In other batting news, Palatka let Ryan Surrency and Cason Thomas run wild. Surrency scored three runs while going 2-for-2, while Thomas scored three runs and stole a base while going 2-for-4. Thomas is becoming a predictor of Palatka's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 2-1 (and 1-3 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Landen Echols, who scored two runs while going 1-for-2.
Palatka is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 3-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.5 runs over those games. Middleburg's victory bumped their record up to 5-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Middleburg has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Palatka struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Middleburg skirted past Palatka 7-5 in their previous matchup back in March of 2024. Will Middleburg repeat their success, or does Palatka have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
