Vandegrift is 2-8 against Cedar Ridge since February of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Vandegrift Vipers will face off against the Cedar Ridge Raiders at 7:00 p.m. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Having struggled with three losses in a row, Vandegrift turned things around against Manor on Tuesday. They blew past the Mustangs 13-3. That looming 13-3 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Vipers yet this season.
Meanwhile, Cedar Ridge had already won four in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 16.3 runs) and they went ahead and made it five on Tuesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Tigers a 10-0 shutout. The Raiders might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five games by ten runs or more this season.
Caitlin Benningfield made a big impact no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out 12 over six innings pitched. With that strong performance, she is now averaging an impressive 5.7 strikeouts per game. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March of 2024.
In other batting news, Quinn Rives was a standout: she went 2-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. That home run was her first of the season. Another player making a difference was Savanna Winner, who went 2-for-3 with two triples, one run, and one RBI.
Cedar Ridge hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most five strikeouts in six consecutive matchups.
Cedar Ridge's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-3. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.3 runs on average over those games. As for Vandegrift, they now have a winning record of 4-3.
Vandegrift suffered a grim 15-3 defeat to Cedar Ridge in their previous matchup back in April of 2024. Can Vandegrift avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
