A feisty cat fight will be fought as St. James Wildcats face off against Berwick Panthers at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.
St. James came into this matchup off a tough 18-run defeat on Monday. This time they kept things ultra-competitive, but unfortunately the final result was the same. They fell just short of Central Catholic by a score of 4-2 on Tuesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest loss the Wildcats have suffered since March 14, 2024.
Tierney Zenon spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and three unearned) runs on five hits and racked up nine Ks. Those hits marked the first that she allowed this season.
At the plate, Jai Bright was cooking despite her team's loss, going 2-for-3 with one home run, two RBI, and one double. That double was her first of the season. Another player making a difference was Shiya Steib, who scored a run and stole Two bases. while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Berwick can bid farewell to their three-game losing streak thanks to their game on Tuesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Patterson a 15-0 shutout. The Panthers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three games by nine runs or more this season.
Madison Diboll was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out nine batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Diboll was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and one triple.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Makinzie Macaluso, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-3. Ann Marie Beadle was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one home run and two RBI.
Berwick kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. They are 2-1 when they post 11 or more hits.
St. James' defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 4-5. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 8.8 runs. As for Berwick, the victory was their first on the road , bumping their record up to 3-6.
St. James beat Berwick 7-3 in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for St. James since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
