Baseball Game Preview: Lake Norman Wildcats vs. Cox Mill Chargers

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Previous Games

05/01/24 - Neutral	2-4 L
04/12/24 - Away	5-8 L
04/08/24 - Home	2-3 L
04/05/23 - Home	13-9 W
04/04/23 - Away	5-9 L
+ 3 more games

Lake Norman and Cox Mill are an even 4-4 against one another since April of 2022, but likely not for long. The Wildcats will head out on the road to face off against the Chargers at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Lake Norman's pitching crew has only allowed 3.2 runs per game this season, so Cox Mill's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Lake Norman's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They walked away with a 5-0 victory over South Iredell. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Wildcats.

Caden Beaver looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over four innings pitched.

At the plate, Lake Norman's win was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Christian Sandoval, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-3.

Meanwhile, after soaring to 11 runs the game before, Cox Mill was a bit more limited in their game on Friday. They lost 11-1 to Hickory Ridge.

Lake Norman pushed their record up to 12-5 with the victory, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.7 runs on average over those games. As for Cox Mill, they have been struggling recently as they've lost four of their last five matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 7-6 record this season.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Lake Norman has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Cox Mill struggles in that department as they've been averaging 10.8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.

Lake Norman couldn't quite finish off Cox Mill in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 and fell 4-2. Can the Wildcats avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.