Softball Game Preview: Hialeah Gardens Gladiators vs. Mater Lakes Academy Bears

The Hialeah Gardens Gladiators will head out on the road to take on the Mater Lakes Academy Bears at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Hialeah Gardens knows how to get runs on the board -- the team has finished with ten runs or more in their past three contests -- so hopefully Mater Lakes Academy likes a good challenge.

Hialeah Gardens' pitching crew heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Monday. They blew past Westland Hialeah 19-0. The Gladiators might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won eight games by nine runs or more this season.

Krystal Martinez and Thalia Hare did most of the damage at the plate: Martinez went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, five RBI, and three runs, while Hare went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, two stolen bases, and four RBI. That's the most RBI Martinez has posted since back in February. Delania Aleman was another key player, going 2-for-3 with three RBI, two runs, and one triple.

They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Hialeah Gardens kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 15 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least ten hits in three consecutive contests.

Meanwhile, Mater Lakes Academy didn't have quite enough to beat Hialeah on Monday and fell 3-2. The Bears have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Hialeah Gardens pushed their record up to 9-7 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 16.7 runs over those games. As for Mater Lakes Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-6.

Hialeah Gardens suffered a grim 15-5 defeat to Mater Lakes Academy in their previous meeting back in February of 2017. Can the Gladiators avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.