The Heritage Christian Academy Eagles will square off against the Ezekiel Academy Knights at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Heritage Christian Academy is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.6 runs per game this season.
The home team had come away the winner the last three times Heritage Christian Academy and Coosa Valley Academy had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. Heritage Christian Academy fell 9-5 to Coosa Valley Academy on Tuesday.
Leah Pace
| 03/11/25 vs Coosa Valley Academy | 9 |
| 02/24/25 @ Ezekiel Academy | 6 |
| 03/06/25 vs Tuscaloosa Christian | 5 |
| 02/25/25 vs Evangel Christian | 4 |
| 02/28/25 @ Chambers Academy | 3 |
Leah Pace put in work no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out nine batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and eight unearned) runs off five hits. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in strikeouts. She was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of her five plate appearances with one triple, one stolen base, and one run. That triple marked the first that she hit this season.
Pace wasn't the only one making solid contact as two players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was AC Amick, who scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. That stolen base was Amick's first of the season.
Meanwhile, Ezekiel Academy's rock-solid pitchers showed up for the team's third consecutive shutout on Tuesday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Lakeside School a 12-0 shutout. The result was nothing new for the Knights, who have now won eight contests by six runs or more so far this season.
Like Heritage Christian Academy, Ezekiel Academy also got a great game from a two-way player: Sarah Vick. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Vick has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in ten consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Lauryn Darnell, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Jillian Newell, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2.
Ezekiel Academy hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most five strikeouts in 11 consecutive games.
Ezekiel Academy is on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 11 matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 14-5 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.2 runs on average over those games. Heritage Christian Academy's loss dropped their record down to 5-9.
Thursday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Heritage Christian Academy hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .318. However, it's not like Ezekiel Academy struggles in that department as they've averaged .349. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Heritage Christian Academy skirted past Ezekiel Academy 11-10 in their previous meeting back in February. Will Heritage Christian Academy repeat their success, or does Ezekiel Academy have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
