The Foundation Christian Academy Panthers will head out to square off against the Carrollwood Day Patriots at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, these teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Foundation Christian Academy took a seven-run loss the last time they faced off against Cambridge Christian, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Panthers came out on top in a nail-biter against the Lancers on Friday, sneaking past 10-8. Considering the Panthers' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
Makayla Howard made a splash while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits. She has been consistent : she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-4. She also put up a double, which was her first of the season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Raegan Goble, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2. McKay Barron was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Carrollwood Day came tearing into Thursday's matchup with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 6.3 runs), and they left with even more momentum. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Warriors a 15-0 shutout. Considering the Patriots have won three games by more than six runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Like Foundation Christian Academy, Carrollwood Day also got a great game from a two-way player: Maya Fuller. She didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out six over four innings pitched. Fuller was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, four RBI, and two runs.
In other batting news, Julia Antinori was a standout: she got on base in three of her four plate appearances with two runs, one triple, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Olivia Fuller, who scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in two of her four plate appearances.
Carrollwood Day always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .719. The last time their OBP was this high was back in February of 2024.
Carrollwood Day's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 4-5. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 4.0 runs on average over those games. As for Foundation Christian Academy, with the victory, they broke their three-game losing streak and moved their record to 6-7.
Foundation Christian Academy suffered a grim 15-0 defeat to Carrollwood Day when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Can the Panthers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
