The Richlands Blue Tornado will venture away from home to square off against the Fort Chiswell Pioneers at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
On Thursday, Richlands needed a bit of extra time to put away Graham. They blew past the G-Men 21-15. The Blue Tornado haven't had any issues with the G-Men recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive win against them.
Gage Hylton
| 04/17/25 @ Graham | 1 |
| 04/15/25 vs Lebanon | 2 |
| 03/19/25 vs Fort Chiswell | 2 |
| 03/18/25 @ Gate City | 2 |
Gage Hylton made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out seven over four innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in four consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in four of his six plate appearances with five runs, three RBI, and one stolen base. He also put up a double, which was his first of the season.
In other batting news, Collin Adkins was incredible, getting on base in all six of his plate appearances with four stolen bases, three runs, and two doubles. Those doubles were his first of the season. Another player making a difference was Parker Spencer, who went 2-for-5 with three RBI and two runs.
Richlands always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .528. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Fort Chiswell came tearing into Thursday's game with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 21 runs), and they left with even more momentum. They never let the Maroons get on the board and left with an 11-0 victory. Considering the Pioneers have won seven matchups by more than six runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Fort Chiswell pushed their record up to 8-1 with the win, which was their third straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.3 runs on average over those games. As for Richlands, the win was their first on the road , bumping their record up to 4-5.
Richlands might still be hurting after the 16-3 loss they got from Fort Chiswell when the teams last played back in March. Can the Blue Tornado avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
