vs
| 03/12/24 - Away | 15-9 W |
| 03/12/24 - Away | 12-1 W |
| 03/14/23 - Home | 5-0 W |
| 03/15/22 - Away | 15-0 W |
Northwest is a perfect 4-0 against Houston County since March of 2022 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Northwest Vikings will welcome the Houston County Fighting Irish at 6:00 p.m. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Having struggled with seven defeats in a row, Northwest turned things around against Cheatham County Central on Tuesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Cubs a 3-0 shutout.
Joshua Tharpe made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out ten over seven innings pitched. What's more, he gave up only zero earned runs, the fewest he's had since back in March of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with one double and one RBI.
Tharpe wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Cross Newman, who scored a run while going 1-for-3. Jayden Helfer also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen base of the season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Houston County). They blew past Whites Creek 15-8 on Wednesday. With that victory, the Fighting Irish brought their scoring average up to 6.7 runs per game.
Like Northwest, Houston County also got a great game from a two-way player: Brody Harris. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Harris has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. He was even better at the plate, going 2-for-3 with four RBI, two runs, and one stolen base.
In other batting news, Kaden Compton was incredible, scoring three runs while going 2-for-2. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in RBI (two). Another player making a difference was Connor Mahoney, who scored two runs while getting on base in two of his three plate appearances.
Houston County hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most four strikeouts in three consecutive matches.
Northwest's first win this season bumped their record up to 1-7. As for Houston County, their victory bumped their record up to 2-5.
Everything went Northwest's way against Houston County in their previous meeting back in March of 2024, as Northwest made off with a 15-9 win. Will Northwest repeat their success, or does Houston County have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
