The Merritt Island Christian Cougars will head out to challenge the Cocoa Beach Minutemen at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday. Merritt Island Christian has given up an average of 11.8 runs per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Merritt Island Christian fell victim to Satellite and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They lost 15-0 to the Scorpions. Having soared to a lofty 22 runs in the game before, the Cougars' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
Meanwhile, Cocoa Beach got the win against Heritage on Wednesday by a conclusive 14-3. The Minutemen might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won six matchups by ten runs or more this season.
Zoe Vella made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 11 batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off only two hits. Those 11 strikeouts gave her a new career-high. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 1-for-2.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kaelin Goslin, who scored three runs while going 3-for-3. Those three hits gave her a new career-high. Isabella Deese was another key player, scoring a run while going 1-for-4.
Merritt Island Christian dropped their record down to 4-6 with the loss, which was their third straight on the road. As for Cocoa Beach, they now have a winning record of 8-7.
Cocoa Beach's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Merritt Island Christian hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .328. It's a different story for Cocoa Beach, though, as they've only averaged .257. Will they be able to contain Merritt Island Christian's hitters?
Everything went Merritt Island Christian's way against Cocoa Beach when the teams last played back in February of 2024, as Merritt Island Christian made off with an 11-4 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Cougars since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
