Softball Preview: Montgomery Red Raiders vs. Sugar Valley Rural Phoenix
Montgomery is 6-0 against Sugar Valley Rural since April of 2019, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Thursday. The Montgomery Red Raiders will head out on the road to take on the Sugar Valley Rural Phoenix at 4:30 p.m. Keep an eye on the score for this one: both teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
Montgomery is hoping to deliver their fans another blowout on Thursday, just like they did against Sullivan County (and have done all season long). Everything went Montgomery's way against Sullivan County on Tuesday as Montgomery made off with an 18-5 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Montgomery.
Ava Hartman spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and four unearned) runs on five hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Montgomery let Madisyn Miller and Addi Cross loose on the outfield. Miller scored four runs and stole a base while going 3-for-5, while Cross scored three runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-5. Another player making a difference was Falin Reynolds, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Sugar Valley Rural can finally bid farewell to their six-game losing streak thanks to their game on Tuesday. Everything went their way against Millville as Sugar Valley Rural made off with a 13-3 victory. Sugar Valley Rural's hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.
The team relied heavily on Lilly Mundrick, who scored four runs and stole five bases while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. The team also got some help courtesy of Olivia Clester, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with four RBI.
Montgomery is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season. As for Sugar Valley Rural, their win bumped their record up to 2-6.
Sugar Valley Rural's pitching crew has a tough task ahead of them: Montgomery has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.6 hits per game. It's a different story for Sugar Valley Rural, though, as they've been averaging 13.6. Given Montgomery's sizable advantage in that area, Sugar Valley Rural will need to find a way to close that gap.
Montgomery took their victory against Sugar Valley Rural in their previous meeting back in March by a conclusive 11-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for Montgomery since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
