Softball Preview: Valley Central Vikings vs. Goshen Central Gladiators
The Valley Central Vikings will be playing in front of their home fans against the Goshen Central Gladiators at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Valley Central's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Wednesday. They were the clear victor by an 11-0 margin over Cornwall Central. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Valley Central.
The result came thanks to Kori Geiselhart's shutout, as she gave up just five hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Emilia Brundage was incredible, going 2-for-4 with three runs, a triple, and a double. Autumn Strobach was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Goshen Central had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 11 runs), and they went ahead and made it three on Wednesday. Everything went their way against the Panthers as they made off with a 10-2 victory.
Addison Freiberger and Brooke Shaeffer made a big impact no matter where they played. On the mound, Freiberger tossed 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Shaeffer struck out six batters over 5.2 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off six hits (and only one walk). At bat, Freiberger scored a run while going 2-for-4, while Shaeffer scored two runs while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Sophia Springer, who scored three runs while going 2-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Preslei Bakker, who scored two runs while going 1-for-3.
Valley Central's win bumped their record up to 10-1. As for Goshen Central, they are on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 10-3 record this season.
Friday's contest will be a test for both team's pitchers. Valley Central hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .416. However, it's not like Goshen Central struggles in that department as they've averaged .332. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Valley Central took their victory against Goshen Central when the teams last played back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 10-4. Does Valley Central have another victory up their sleeve, or will Goshen Central turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
