The Southwood Knights will be playing in front of their home fans against the Churubusco Eagles at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Wednesday, it was close, but Southwood sidestepped Lewis Cass for a 4-3 win.
Jaron Craft made a splash while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching seven innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off six hits. Craft has been consistent recently: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in three consecutive pitching appearances. Craft was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Craft wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Jaret Denney, who went 1-for-3 with a stolen base and two RBI.
Meanwhile, Churubusco scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Thursday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Hamilton a 12-0 shutout. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.
Like Southwood, Churubusco also got a great game from a two-way player: Ethan Hartsock. On the mound, he struck out nine batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (and only one walk). Hartsock was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 1-for-2.
In other batting news, Keaton Blessing was excellent, scoring a run while going 2-for-3. Jayden Dunham was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 1-for-2.
Southwood has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a massive bump to their 4-9 record this season. As for Churubusco, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 3-10-1.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Southwood has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Churubusco struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Southwood beat Churubusco 11-6 in their previous meeting back in May of 2023. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was Churubusco's Croix Haberstock, who went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBI. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be that much easier for Southwood to walk away with another win? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
