The Boardman Spartans will head out on the road to challenge the Howland Tigers at 5:00 p.m. on Monday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Boardman comes in on three and Howland on five.
On Saturday, Boardman earned a 5-1 victory over GlenOak.
Tori Strines spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on five hits and racked up eight Ks.
At the plate, Boardman's win was truly a team effort as six different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Alex Ward, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Howland got themselves on the board against Streetsboro on Saturday, but Streetsboro never followed suit. They were the clear victors by a 13-0 margin over the Rockets. The result was nothing new for the Tigers, who have now won five matches by ten runs or more so far this season.
Brooke Tatar made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out ten over five innings pitched. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two hits in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and one stolen base. That stolen base marked the first that she snagged this season.
In other batting news, Madison Schmitz was incredible, scoring four runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-4. The dominant performance also gave her a new career-high in home runs (two). Maya Kubancsek was another key player, going 3-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI.
Howland hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least four batters in nine consecutive contests.
Howland's victory was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-4. Those road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.5 runs over those games. As for Boardman, their record is now 9-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Boardman has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Howland struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.4 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Boardman came up short against Howland in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, falling 4-1. Can the Spartans avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
