The Red Bird Cardinals will head out on the road to face off against the Cordia Lions at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Red Bird has given up an average of 14.6 runs per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Red Bird fell victim to Buckhorn and their airtight pitching crew last Tuesday. They might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 16-0 to the Wildcats, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior. The Cardinals haven't had much luck with the Wildcats recently, as the team has come up short the last nine times they've met.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Cordia). They put the hurt on Oneida Baptist Institute with a sharp 17-6 win on Tuesday. The team's explosion at the plate also rewarded the Lions with their most commanding win of the season.
Riley Melton was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He struck out ten batters over five innings while giving up just two earned (and four unearned) runs off six hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since April 1st. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
In other batting news, Bryson Perkins was a standout: he got on base in three of his four plate appearances with four stolen bases, three RBI, and two runs. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. Ayden Miniard was another key player, going 1-for-4 with four stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI.
Cordia always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .649. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive contests.
Red Bird's loss dropped their record down to 1-7. As for Cordia, they moved to 3-18 with that victory, which also ended their four-game losing streak.
Red Bird might still be hurting after the 8-1 defeat they got from Cordia in their previous matchup back in March of 2023. Can the Cardinals avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
