The South Laurel Cardinals will face off against the Rowan County Vikings at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday. South Laurel is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
On Monday, South Laurel got the win against Blazer by a conclusive 10-2. The Cardinals might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three matchups by eight runs or more this season.
Waylon Hensley made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out six over five innings pitched. Hensley was also solid in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
In other batting news, Reece Noble and Keaton Smith did most of the damage at the plate: Noble scored three runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances, while Smith scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Will Alsip was another key player, going 1-for-4 with three RBI.
Meanwhile, Rowan County has relied on a stalwart pitchers averaging 3.22 runs allowed per game, but that average took a hit on Monday. They lost 15-1 to Bowling Green. The game marked the Vikings' lowest-scoring contest so far this season.
Rowan County saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Tyler Crisp, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one triple. That's the most hits Crisp has posted since back in March of 2024. Brody Lykins also deserves some recognition as he hit his first triple of the season.
Even though they lost, Rowan County hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most three strikeouts in four consecutive matchups.
South Laurel's win was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-0. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average this season. As for Rowan County, their defeat was their first of the season and makes their record 8-1.
Tuesday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. South Laurel hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .340. However, it's not like Rowan County struggles in that department as they've averaged .396. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.
