The John Champe Knights will head out on the road to challenge the Loudoun County Captains at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (John Champe has five straight wins, Loudoun County has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
John Champe is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by a 30-0 margin over Park View on Thursday. Considering the Knights have won six matches by more than six runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Nick Warner
| 05/01/25 @ Park View | 5 |
| 05/28/24 @ Dominion | 2 |
| 05/16/24 @ Broad Run | 1 |
| 05/07/24 vs Woodgrove | 3 |
| 04/30/24 vs Loudoun County | 7 |
Red Jackson and Nick Warner made a big impact while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Jackson struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). Meanwhile, Warner tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. What's more, he posted five strikeouts, the most he's had since back in April of 2024. At the plate, Jackson went 2-for-4 with four runs and two RBI, while Warner went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, five RBI, and three runs.
In other batting news, Hayden Tellman was incredible, getting on base in five of his six plate appearances with four runs, three RBI, and one double. Cole Rounds-Raabe was another key player, going 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs.
John Champe kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 21 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 5.2 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 contests they've averaged 14.6.
Meanwhile, Loudoun County didn't have quite enough to beat Loudoun Valley on Tuesday and fell 2-1.
Josh Cook was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he struck out eight batters over 4.2 innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits.
At the plate, Loudoun County saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Brady Shaw, who went 1-for-3 with one run.
John Champe's record is now 11-3. As for Loudoun County, they now have a losing record of 4-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. John Champe has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Loudoun County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
John Champe couldn't quite finish off Loudoun County in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 and fell 7-5. Can the Knights avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
