The Fleming County Panthers will challenge the Russell Red Devils at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Fleming County will be strutting in after a victory while Russell will be coming in after a defeat.
Fleming County took a loss when they played away from home on Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They put the hurt on Nicholas County with a sharp 13-3 win. The victory was a breath of fresh air for the Panthers as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.
Preston Cropper was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off 11 hits (and not a single walk). That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in May of 2025. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one triple and one run. That triple marked the first that he has hit this season.
In other batting news, Ryker Bannister and Tyler Emmons did most of the damage at the plate: Bannister went a perfect 3-for-3 with four RBI, two runs, and one stolen base, while Emmons went 2-for-3 with one home run and five RBI. Those five RBI gave Emmons a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Branson Hawkins, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with three runs and one stolen base.
Fleming County always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .629. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Nicholas County only posted an OBP of .440.
Meanwhile, Russell unfortunately witnessed the end of their four-game winning streak on Wednesday. They fell just short of Blazer by a score of 5-4.
Russell's loss dropped their record down to 20-8. As for Fleming County, their win bumped their record up to 17-15.
Fleming County was able to grind out a solid victory over Russell when the teams last played two weeks ago, winning 9-6. Do the Panthers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Red Devils turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
