Softball Game Preview: Concord Pirates vs. Shirley Blue Devils

Concord is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Monday. They will head out to face off against the Shirley Blue Devils at 4:30 p.m. Shirley took a loss in their last matchup and will be looking to turn the tables on Concord, who comes in off a win.

On Friday, Concord narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Mt. Vernon-Enola 8-7. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Pirates.

L Cornett made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over seven innings while giving up three earned (and four unearned) runs off seven hits. Cornett was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while going 4-for-4.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on L Tharp, who went 1-for-3 with three RBI, one triple, and one run.

Meanwhile, Shirley suffered their biggest loss since April 2, 2024 on Thursday. They came up short against Calico Rock, falling 16-3.

Concord's victory was their 14th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 2-0. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.1 runs over those games. As for Shirley, their defeat ended a five-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 0-2.

Concord skirted past Shirley 4-2 in their previous matchup back in May of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for Concord since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.