Southwestern and Dunkirk are an even 5-5 against one another since June of 2021, but likely not for long. The Trojans will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Marauders at 5:00 p.m. Dunkirk took a loss in their last matchup and will be looking to turn the tables on Southwestern, who comes in off a win.
Southwestern is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by a 14-1 margin over Jamestown on Tuesday. The Trojans have beaten the Red Raiders the last three times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Red Raiders has come to flipping the script.
Ariana Silakowski
| 04/28/26 @ Jamestown | 12 |
| 05/12/25 @ Fredonia | 8 |
| 05/09/25 vs Fredonia | 8 |
| 04/08/26 vs Bishop Ireton | 6 |
| 04/06/26 vs Horseheads | 6 |
Ariana Silakowski made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 12 over six innings pitched. Those 12 strikeouts gave her a new career-high. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-4 with three runs and one stolen base.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Leia Taylor, who got on base in two of her four plate appearances with four stolen bases and three runs. Those three runs gave her a new career-high. Kate Casel was another key player, getting on base in four of her five plate appearances with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run.
Southwestern always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .524. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Dunkirk was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 13-1 to Allegany-Limestone, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior.
Dunkirk saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Gracie Grann, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base. Maria Dolce also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
Dunkirk's defeat dropped their record down to 2-8. As for Southwestern, their victory bumped their record up to 4-7.
Dunkirk's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Southwestern has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Dunkirk, though, as they've been averaging only 2.8 strikeouts. Will Southwestern keep running through batters, or will the Marauders buck the trend?
Southwestern got the 'W' in their previous meeting back in April against Dunkirk by a conclusive 10-3 score. Do the Trojans have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Marauders turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
