The Alexander Cougars will square off against the Newnan Cougars at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. Alexander is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.6 runs per game this season.
Alexander will roll into the match after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up two runs two weeks ago, then bounced right back against Kennesaw Mountain on Wednesday. Alexander was the clear victor by a 12-2 margin over Kennesaw Mountain. Considering the Cougars have won seven contests by more than seven runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.
Kaylee Underwood spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and one unearned) run on seven hits and racked up six Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't pitched less than six innings in five consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Kennedy Cantrell and Kenzie Townsend did most of the damage at the plate: Cantrell scored three runs while going 3-for-4, while Townsend went 3-for-5 with four RBI and two doubles. The dominant performance also gave Cantrell a new career-high in hits. Lulu Berry was another key player, getting on base in four of her five plate appearances with a triple and two RBI.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Alexander always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .615. That's a new trend for them: their average OBP was 36.1% earlier this season, but in their last ten games they've averaged 49.5%.
Meanwhile, Wednesday just wasn't the day for Newnan's offense. They lost 8-0 to Northgate on Wednesday. Having soared to a lofty 15 runs in the game before, the Cougars' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
Alexander's win bumped their record up to 14-9. As for Newnan, they now have a losing record at 12-13.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Alexander hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like Newnan struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.5. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Alexander beat Newnan 9-5 in their previous matchup back in September. Does Alexander have another victory up their sleeve, or will Newnan turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
