The Steinbrenner Warriors will square off against the Crystal River Pirates at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.
Steinbrenner is headed out to face Crystal River after opening their season at home and giving their fans just what they were looking for. Steinbrenner never let Gaither get on the board and left with a 7-0 win on Tuesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest victory the Warriors have posted since April 16, 2024.
Lilly Patton
| 02/18/25 vs Gaither | 13 |
| 03/15/24 vs Durant | 7 |
| 05/14/24 vs Durant | 6 |
| 04/16/24 @ Robinson | 6 |
| 04/06/24 vs Crystal River | 6 |
The result came thanks to Lilly Patton's shutout, as she gave up just two hits and racked up 13 Ks. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in strikeouts.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Sophie Luaces, who went 3-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and one double. Another player making a difference was Jenna Fortenberry, who scored three runs while going 2-for-3.
Steinbrenner was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .452. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Gaither only posted a batting average of .087.
Meanwhile, everything went Crystal River's way against South Sumter on Thursday as Crystal River made off with a 7-0 win. The Pirates have beaten the Raiders the last five times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Raiders has come to flipping the script.
Not much got past Violet Flynn, who gave up just two hits and racked up 15 Ks to keep South Sumter off the board.
On the hitting side, Crystal River let Athena Childs and Emma Crosby run wild. Childs scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-2, while Crosby went 1-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI. Kinley Norcross was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4.
Steinbrenner came out on top in a nail-biter against Crystal River when the teams last played back in April of 2024, sneaking past 5-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for Steinbrenner since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
