vs
| 02/26/24 - Home | 5-9 L |
| 02/23/23 - Away | 6-11 L |
| 04/11/22 - Home | 10-21 L |
| 03/01/22 - Away | 14-8 W |
| 03/12/19 - Away | 5-11 L |
| + 5 more games |
Ocala Christian and Countryside Christian are an even 5-5 against one another since March of 2015, but likely not for long. The Ocala Christian Crusaders will be playing in front of their home fans against the Countryside Christian Minutemen at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Ocala Christian has struggled recently with ten defeats in a row, while Countryside Christian will arrive with seven straight wins.
Ocala Christian fell victim to P.K. Yonge and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They lost 22-0 to the Blue Wave.
Meanwhile, Countryside Christian won against Jefferson County on Monday with 18 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. Everything went Countryside Christian's way against Eastside as Countryside Christian made off with an 18-10 victory. Considering the Minutemen have won five matchups by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Jace Reustle and Hunter Burgess made a big impact while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Reustle struck out seven batters over four innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits (and not a single walk). Meanwhile, Burgess struck out seven batters over three innings while giving up just one earned (and eight unearned) runs off three hits. That's the most strikeouts Reustle has posted since back in March of 2024. At bat, Reustle went 1-for-4 with three RBI, one triple, and one run, while Burgess scored two runs and stole Two bases. while going 2-for-5. Burgess is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last four games he's played.
In other batting news, Lucas Gruenwald was a standout: he scored two runs and stole Two bases. while going 3-for-4. He has been hot recently, having posted two or more stolen bases the last four times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Brayden Dalton, who scored three runs and stole Two bases. while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances.
Countryside Christian kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least 11 hits in three consecutive contests.
Countryside Christian's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-1. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.3 runs over those games. As for Ocala Christian, their loss dropped their record down to 0-9.
Ocala Christian couldn't quite get it done against Countryside Christian in their previous meeting back in February of 2024 as they fell 9-5. Can Ocala Christian avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
