The Grace Academy Lions are taking a road trip to face off against the North Hills Christian Eagles at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Grace Academy will be strutting in after a victory while North Hills Christian will be coming in after a loss.
Grace Academy lost a heartbreaker the last time they played Lake Norman Christian, but it's fair to say they got their revenge given the result of Thursday's contest. Grace Academy was the clear victor by a 14-4 margin over Lake Norman Christian on Thursday. Grace Academy might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won nine games by nine runs or more this season.
Fletcher Owens
| 04/24/25 vs Lake Norman Christian | 4 |
| 04/10/25 vs Lake Norman Christian | 3 |
| 03/18/25 vs Covenant Classical | 2 |
| 02/27/25 vs Charlotte S | 1 |
| 02/24/25 @ Metrolina Christian Academy | 1 |
Fletcher Owens made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four). He was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with four stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI. Grace Academy is undefeated when Owens posts two or more runs, but 4-7 otherwise.
In other batting news, Brody Mcnamara was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with five stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. Those five stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Seth Stanton, who went 3-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Grace Academy always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .629. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, North Hills Christian didn't have quite enough to beat Crossroads Christian on Friday and fell 4-2. The Eagles have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Cohen Benfield was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI. He has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played.
North Hills Christian's defeat dropped their record down to 6-11. As for Grace Academy, their record is now 12-7.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Grace Academy has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like North Hills Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 5.4 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Grace Academy took their win against North Hills Christian when the teams last played back in March by a conclusive 12-2 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Lions since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
