Columbus East is 7-1 against Shelbyville since April of 2015, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Friday. The Columbus East Olympians will be staying on the road to face off against the Shelbyville Golden Bears at 8:00 p.m. The last three games Columbus East has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
On Monday, it was a hard-fought match, but Columbus East had to settle for a 6-4 loss against Southport.
Jackson Watkins was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. Watkins has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive pitching appearances. Watkins was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with two RBI and a double.
In other pitching news, Columbus East got a good showing from James Rotert, who tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Rotert has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances.
Back at the plate, Blake Borkhardt was cooking despite his team's loss, going 1-for-3 with a home run. Marcus Wilkinson was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Shelbyville was able to grind out a solid win over Southport on Saturday, taking the game 8-4. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Shelbyville.
Grantland Fitzgerald was incredible, scoring a run and stealing two bases while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Brock Kuhn, who scored two runs while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances.
Columbus East's defeat dropped their record down to 9-17. As for Shelbyville, they are on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 11 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 15-8 record this season.
Columbus East skirted past Shelbyville 2-0 when the teams last played back in May of 2021. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Shelbyville's Benny Thompson, who struck out nine batters over six innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off two hits. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be that much easier for Columbus East to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
