The Bethel Christian Academy Crusaders are taking a road trip to challenge The Master's Academy Lions at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Bethel Christian Academy has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the contest with five straight defeats, while The Master's Academy will come in with five straight victories.
Bethel Christian Academy lost 18-3 to Mountain View Christian Academy on Tuesday.
Bethel Christian Academy saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Dylan Smith, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-3. Smith also put up a double, which was his first of the season.
Meanwhile, The Master's Academy got the win against IC Imagine on Tuesday by a conclusive 17-3. The result was nothing new for the Lions, who have now won nine matches by six runs or more so far this season.
Matthew Herring made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up more than two hits in four consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, Sawyer Waugh and Luke Pate did most of the damage at the plate: Waugh scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4, while Pate scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances. The dominant performance also gave Pate a new career-high in RBI (three). Another player making a difference was Conrad Schmidt, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-2.
The Master's Academy kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 16 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least ten hits in five consecutive games.
The Master's Academy's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 9-2. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.8 runs over those games. As for Bethel Christian Academy, their loss dropped their record down to 4-11.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Bethel Christian Academy has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.5 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like The Master's Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Bethel Christian Academy might still be hurting after the 12-6 defeat they got from The Master's Academy when the teams last played on Friday. Can the Crusaders avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
