The Drury Blue Devils will face off against the Mount Everett Regional Eagles at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Drury will come into the contest with an undefeated record on the line.
Drury's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Monday. They blew past Lenox Memorial 14-0. The result was nothing new for the Blue Devils, who have now won six games by ten runs or more so far this season.
Connor Hinkell was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out seven over five innings pitched. Hinkell was also big at the plate, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one double. He also put up an RBI, which was his first of the season.
In other batting news, JJ Prenguber was a standout: he went 2-for-3 with four RBI and one run. Brayden Durant was another key player, going 2-for-3 with three runs and one double.
Drury always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .618. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, it may have taken eight innings to finish the job, but Mount Everett Regional ultimately got the result they hoped for on Monday. They skirted past Smith Academy 9-7. The win continues a trend for the Eagles in their matchups with the Falcons: they've now won three in a row.
Like Drury, Mount Everett Regional also got a great game from a two-way player: Matt Lowe. Throwing, Lowe tossed 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Meanwhile, Trevor Leonard struck out seven batters over 4.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off two hits. Lowe has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances. At bat, Lowe went 2-for-5 with two runs and one stolen base, while Leonard went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jacob Kreis, who went 3-for-5 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run. Another player making a difference was Sean Warren, who went 1-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Drury pushed their record up to 7-0 with the victory, which was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season. The road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.9 runs on average this season. As for Mount Everett Regional, their victory bumped their record up to 5-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Drury has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Mount Everett Regional struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Drury beat Mount Everett Regional 5-2 when the teams last played back in May of 2023. Do the Blue Devils have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Eagles turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
