The North Buncombe Black Hawks will head out on the road to take on the Madison Patriots at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday. North Buncombe's pitching crew has only allowed two runs per game this season, so Madison's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when North Buncombe and A.C. Reynolds meet (four straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Tuesday. North Buncombe fell just short of A.C. Reynolds by a score of 5-3. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Black Hawks have suffered since March 12, 2024.
Sadie Jo Hunter
| 03/11/25 vs A.C. Reynolds | 24 |
| 03/03/25 @ Tuscola | 20 |
| 04/16/24 vs T.C. Roberson | 19 |
| 03/27/24 vs Enka | 17 |
| 03/07/25 vs R-S Central | 14 |
Sadie Jo Hunter spent all 11 innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and four unearned) runs on five hits and racked up 24 Ks. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in strikeouts.
On the hitting side, North Buncombe saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Lilly Clark, who scored a run while going 2-for-5. Gracelynn Fisher also deserves some recognition as she scored her first run of the season.
Meanwhile, after only one run in their last contest, Madison made sure to put some runs up on the board against Avery County on Tuesday. Madison never let Avery County get on the board and left with a 16-0 victory. Considering the Patriots' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.
Carrie Gunter made a big impact no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and only one walk). That's the first time she hasn't allowed a single hit since back in April of 2024. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, Madison got a massive performance out of Shelby Roberts, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-2. Another player making a difference was Layla Rhinehart, who scored two runs while going 2-for-2.
Madison's first win this season bumped their record up to 1-2. As for North Buncombe, their defeat dropped their record down to 2-2.
North Buncombe beat Madison 4-0 in their previous matchup back in March of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for North Buncombe since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
