The Destin Sharks will head out on the road to challenge the Lighthouse Private Christian Academy Stingrays at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
While Destin's win against Baker wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. Destin had just enough and edged out Baker 5-3. The victory was a breath of fresh air for the Sharks as it put an end to their five-game losing streak.
Vance Kirby made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 11 batters over 6.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off six hits (and not a single walk). What's more, he gave up only zero walks, the fewest he's had since back in March of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
Palmer Robbins
| 03/10/25 vs Blountstown | 3 |
| 03/28/25 vs Baker | 2 |
| 02/28/25 @ Cottondale | 2 |
| 02/26/25 @ Walton | 2 |
| 03/25/25 @ North Bay Haven Academy | 1 |
| + 4 more games |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Palmer Robbins, who scored two runs while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. He is becoming a predictor of Destin's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 3-1 (and 2-8 when he doesn't). Another player making a difference was Dominic Rivas, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-2.
Destin was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. The last time their batting average was this high was back in April of 2024.
Meanwhile, Lighthouse Private Christian Academy waltzed into their contest on Monday with four straight wins... but they left with five. They blew past the Knights 6-0. The result was nothing new for the Stingrays, who have now won seven games by six runs or more so far this season.
Like Destin, Lighthouse Private Christian Academy also got a great game from a two-way player: M Thompson. On the mound, Thompson tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, David Chapellin pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances. At bat, Thompson went a perfect 3-for-3 with one triple, two RBI, and one run, while Chapellin went 2-for-3 with two RBI. That triple was Thompson's first of the season.
In other batting news, Lighthouse Private Christian Academy let Solomon Rials and Ezekiel Rycroft run wild. Rials scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2, while Rycroft scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Those two runs gave Rycroft a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Adrian Freitez, who went 3-for-4 with one double.
Lighthouse Private Christian Academy pushed their record up to 12-5 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.5 runs on average over those games. As for Destin, their record is now 5-9.
Destin couldn't quite finish off Lighthouse Private Christian Academy in their previous meeting two weeks ago and fell 5-3. Can Destin avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
