The Hoover Huskies will face off against the Independence Patriots at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Hoover is probably headed into the match with a chip on their shoulder considering Madonna just ended the team's six-game winning streak on Friday. They took a 4-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Blue Dons.
Hoover saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Cam Samples, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Independence). Their pitchers stepped up to hand Midland Trail a 20-0 shutout on Friday. Independence hasn't had any issues with Midland Trail recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive victory against them.
Andrew Coalson was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Independence is 2-1 when Coalson allows three or fewer hits, but 6-9-1 otherwise. Coalson was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with five RBI, two runs, and one stolen base. Those five RBI gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Reid Warden was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Degan Williams, who went 1-for-4 with three runs, three RBI, and one triple.
Independence kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in six consecutive contests.
Independence's win bumped their record up to 8-10-1. As for Hoover, their loss dropped their record down to 13-9.
Hoover's speedy runners might be the difference in Saturday's game. The Huskies have been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Independence, though, as they've been averaging an even more impressive 1.2 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Hoover continue to outrun the ball? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.
