The Daviess County Panthers will face off against the Grayson County Cougars at 5:30 p.m. on Monday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Daviess County has struggled recently with three defeats in a row, while Grayson County will arrive with four straight wins.
Things were looking good for Daviess County after they put the first run on the board on Saturday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They fell just short of Barren County by a score of 6-5.
Daviess County got a good showing from Cameron Rickard, who tossed 3.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. What's more, Rickard gave up only one walk, the fewest he's had over his last three matches.
On the hitting side, Brody Brubaker was cooking despite his team's loss, going 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and two RBI. That home run marked the first that he has launched this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Brett Poole, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one double.
Meanwhile, Grayson County got the win against Hopkins County Central on Friday by a conclusive 17-6.
Landon Haycraft made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over six innings while giving up just two earned (and four unearned) runs off four hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and one double. He is becoming a predictor of Grayson County's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 9-11 when he doesn't).
In other batting news, Cameron Fulkerson and Garrett Bradley did most of the damage at the plate: Fulkerson went 3-for-4 with three runs and one stolen base, while Bradley went 1-for-4 with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI. Fulkerson has become a key player for Grayson County: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 9-11 otherwise. Levi Rogers was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
Grayson County kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Hopkins County Central only managed five hits.
Grayson County pushed their record up to 14-11 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. The road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Daviess County, their loss dropped their record down to 16-14.
Daviess County beat Grayson County 6-2 in their previous matchup back in April. Will the Panthers repeat their success, or do the Cougars have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
