Holy Names Academy will venture away from home to take on the Ballard Beavers at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Holy Names Academy has struggled recently with five defeats in a row, while Ballard will arrive with three straight victories.
On Tuesday, Holy Names Academy came up short against Lincoln and fell 10-7.
Lee Smedstad
| 03/18/25 vs Lincoln | 1 |
| 03/13/25 @ Archbishop Murphy | 2 |
| 03/12/25 @ Shorewood | 3 |
| 03/11/25 @ Nathan Hale | 4 |
Lee Smedstad was cooking despite her team's loss, scoring three runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. Smedstad is crushing it when it comes to stolen bases: she's snagged at least one every time she's taken the field this season. Delanie Gilda also deserves some recognition as she hit her first triple of the season.
Meanwhile, Ballard hadn't done well against Roosevelt recently (they were 2-7 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. Ballard narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past Roosevelt 11-10.
The team relied heavily on Alexa Hunt, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI, one triple, and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Katie Davis, who went 2-for-5 with one triple and one run.
Ballard kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits every time they've taken the field this season.
Ballard pushed their record up to 3-0 with the victory, which was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.7 runs over those games. As for Holy Names Academy, their loss dropped their record down to 1-5.
Thursday's matchup will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Holy Names Academy hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .351. However, it's not like Ballard struggles in that department as they've averaged .348. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Holy Names Academy was able to grind out a solid win over Ballard when the teams last played back in March of 2024, winning 6-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for Holy Names Academy since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
