Cowanesque Valley hasn't had much luck against Athens recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Indians will host the Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. Each of these teams will be battling to keep a four-game winning streak alive.
Cowanesque Valley will bounce into Thursday's matchup after beating Sayre, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. The Indians never let the Sabres get on the board and left with a 10-0 win on Wednesday. Considering the Indians have won seven games by more than seven runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.
Levi Stahli made a splash no matter where he played. He tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with two stolen bases, one run, and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Dave Hess, who went 2-for-3 with three stolen bases and two runs. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Hunter Simonds, who went 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBI.
Athens let Mansfield stack five runs on them in the seventh inning on Wednesday but luckily Athens prevailed anyway. The Wildcats came out on top in a nail-biter against the Tigers, sneaking past 8-7. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Wildcats have posted against the Tigers since April 14, 2022.
Like Cowanesque Valley, Athens also got a great game from a two-way player: Duncan Thetga. On the mound, he struck out nine batters over 6.1 innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off six hits (and only one walk). Thetga was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two RBI.
Thetga wasn't the only one making solid contact as seven players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Connor Davidson, who went 1-for-3 with two runs and one double.
Athens pushed their record up to 13-2 with the win, which was their seventh straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.3 runs on average over those games. As for Cowanesque Valley, their win bumped their record up to 12-1.
Thursday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Cowanesque Valley hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .314. However, it's not like Athens struggles in that department as they've averaged .348. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
