Softball Preview: Staunton Bulldogs vs. Gillespie Miners
Staunton is 2-7 against Gillespie since April of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Staunton Bulldogs will head out on the road to challenge the Gillespie Miners at 4:30 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Staunton came tearing into Tuesday's matchup with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They never let the Panthers onto the board and left with an 8-0 win. Give Staunton's pitching crew some credit: that's the team's third straight shutout.
Gianna Bianco tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run over seven innings pitched.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Kylie Lucykow, who went 3-for-4 with five RBI, two runs, and a stolen base. Lilly Bandy was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, Gillespie scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Wednesday. They blew past Dupo 20-4. Winning may never get old, but Gillespie sure is getting used to it with their fourth in a row.
Paxton Reid made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, tossing four innings while giving up just one earned (and three unearned) runs off three hits (she also only allowed one walk). Reid has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up a single earned run in three consecutive pitching appearances. Reid was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a home run, five RBI, and two runs.
In other batting news, Laci Schuckenbrock and Amari Vickery did most of the damage at the plate: Schuckenbrock fired off two home runs and three RBI while going 2-for-4, while Vickery scored three runs and stole three bases while going 3-for-3. Another player making a difference was Ava Parish, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-3.
Staunton's record now sits at 8-2. As for Gillespie, they pushed their record up to 12-3 with that victory, which was their 16th straight at home dating back to last season.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Staunton hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.5 home runs per game. However, it's not like Gillespie struggles in that department as they've been averaging 1.1. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Staunton skirted past Gillespie 5-4 when the teams last played back in May of 2023. Does Staunton have another victory up their sleeve, or will Gillespie turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
