Pine Forest was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their fifth straight defeat. Their rough 15-4 loss to the Harnett Central Trojans might stick with them for a while. The result was an unpleasant reminder to Pine Forest of the 15-9 defeat they experienced in the pair's previous head-to-head fixture last Tuesday.
Davis Collier was cooking despite his team's loss, going 1-for-2 with two stolen bases and an RBI.
On Harnett Central's side, Layton Babb made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He struck out nine batters over four innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits. Babb has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in four consecutive pitching appearances. Babb was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
In other batting news, Keoki Monte and Aiden Taylor did most of the damage at the plate: Monte scored three runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Taylor scored three runs while going 3-for-4. Helder Bejarano was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
Pine Forest's loss dropped their record down to 6-5. As for Harnett Central, their victory bumped their record up to 7-3.
Both squads will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Pine Forest will be staying on the road on Tuesday to face off against E.E. Smith at 7:00 p.m. Pine Forest is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 8.2 runs per game this season. As for Harnett Central, they will head out on the road to challenge Terry Sanford at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both teams will come into the contest having just posted big wins, so someone is set to suffer a big change in fortunes.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
