The Stuart W. Cramer Storm will face off against the Tuscola Mountaineers on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Stuart W. Cramer is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They never let Central Davidson get on the board and left with an 8-0 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Storm.
Not much got past Mason Price, who gave up just six hits to keep Central Davidson off the board.
At the plate, Stuart W. Cramer saw eight different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jack Scholz, who went 2-for-4 with one run, one double, and one RBI. That's the most hits Scholz has posted since back in March.
Meanwhile, Tuscola won against Swain County on Wednesday with ten runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. The Mountaineers blew past Ashe County 10-0. The victory was nothing new for the Mountaineers as they're now sitting on six straight.
Amos Rich made a big impact no matter where he played. He didn't allow a single earned run while striking out nine over five innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in seven consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
In other batting news, Evan Conner and Bo West did most of the damage at the plate: Conner went 3-for-4 with two RBI and one double, while West went 1-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Tuscola was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .400. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .333 or higher in six consecutive matchups.
Stuart W. Cramer's win was their ninth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 17-7. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.9 runs over those games. As for Tuscola, their record now sits at 19-5.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Stuart W. Cramer has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Tuscola struggles in that department as they've been averaging 2.9 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Stuart W. Cramer might still be hurting after the 11-1 defeat they got from Tuscola when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Can the Storm avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
