The Blacksburg Bruins will square off against the Cave Spring Knights at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Blacksburg is coming into the contest hot, having won their last four games.
Blacksburg is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Virginia's top teams: Auburn, who was ranked ninth at the time (Blacksburg was ranked 18th). The Bruins came out on top against the Eagles by a score of 20-15 on Monday. The Bruins' hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.
Major Marshall was a standout: he got on base in three of his five plate appearances with one home run, four runs, and three RBI. Another player making a difference was Reese Tysor, who went 3-for-5 with four RBI, two runs, and one triple.
Blacksburg always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .667. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Cave Spring might've scored the first runs on Tuesday, but it was Christiansburg who claimed the real prize. The Knights came up short against the Blue Demons, falling 15-4. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Knights have suffered against the Blue Demons since April 12, 2022.
Cave Spring saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Sam Urgo, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.
Blacksburg's win was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 7-1. The road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.3 runs over those games. As for Cave Spring, they have been struggling recently as they've lost four of their last five matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 3-5 record this season.
Cave Spring's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Blacksburg has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 10.2 hits per game. It's a different story for Cave Spring, though, as they've been averaging 9.6 hits. Given Blacksburg's sizable advantage in that area, the Knights will need to find a way to close that gap.
Blacksburg took their win against Cave Spring in their previous meeting back in May of 2024 by a conclusive 11-1 score. Will the Bruins repeat their success, or do the Knights have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
