The St. Cloud Bulldogs and the Avon Park Red Devils, after both having extra time off, will shake off the cobwebs and hit the field at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. St. Cloud's pitching crew has only allowed 3.4 runs per game this season, so Avon Park's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
St. Cloud's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed last Friday. They came out on top against Space Coast by a score of 3-0. The win continues a trend for the Bulldogs in their matchups with the Vipers: they've now won five in a row.
The result came thanks to Addison Felblinger's shutout, as she gave up just two hits. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in nine consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Madelis Reyes was excellent, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one stolen base. The team also got some help courtesy of Lacey Scott, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Avon Park hadn't done well against LaBelle recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way last Friday. The Red Devils put the hurt on the Cowboys/Cowgirls with a sharp 6-0 victory. Considering the Red Devils have won six contests by more than five runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Not much got past Paisley Macias, who gave up just a hit and racked up 11 Ks to keep LaBelle off the board.
At the plate, Avon Park got a big performance out of Jalayna Cuencas, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one stolen base and one RBI. Kamya Brassell was another key player, going 1-for-2 with two RBI, one run, and one double.
Avon Park hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as LaBelle struck out 11 times.
Avon Park's record now sits at 7-1. As for St. Cloud, the win was their first on the road, bumping their record up to 7-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. St. Cloud has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Avon Park struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 11.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
St. Cloud got the 'W' in their previous meeting back in February of 2025 against Avon Park by a conclusive 13-3 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bulldogs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
