Softball Game Preview: Holy Cross Crusaders vs. Scranton Knights

The Holy Cross Crusaders will head out to take on the Scranton Knights at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Holy Cross has seven straight victories, Scranton has six straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.

Last Wednesday, Holy Cross got the win against Western Wayne by a conclusive 9-1. Fans of the Crusaders have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 6+ runs.

AVA SCHMIDT

Earned Runs

04/09/25 vs Western Wayne	1
04/04/25 vs Riverside	0
04/02/25 vs Lakeland	1

AVA SCHMIDT was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and not a single walk). She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-4.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on LILA KOLCHARNO, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was MIA GALELLA, who went 1-for-4 with one triple, one run, and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Scranton came up short against Delaware Valley on Wednesday, falling 19-8.

Holy Cross' win was their seventh straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-0. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.9 runs over those games. As for Scranton, their loss dropped their record down to 1-6.

Holy Cross took their win against Scranton when the teams last played back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 12-2 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Crusaders since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.