Softball Game Preview: St. Martin Yellow Jackets vs. Northwest Rankin Cougars

For the second straight game, St. Martin will face off against Northwest Rankin. The Yellow Jackets will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Cougars at 6:00 p.m. St. Martin is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.2 runs per game this season.

St. Martin heads in on the heels of a playoff matchup on Thursday. They lost 13-3 to Northwest Rankin. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest defeat the Yellow Jackets have suffered since March 14th.

For Northwest Rankin's part, Grace Wallis made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She struck out eight batters over six innings while giving up three earned runs off seven hits (and only one walk). Wallis has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double.

In other batting news, Northwest Rankin got a massive performance out of Jaliya Sullivian, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and one double. Molly May was another key player, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs and two RBI.

Northwest Rankin was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .542. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in three consecutive contests.

Northwest Rankin is on a roll lately: they've won 16 of their last 18 games. That's provided a nice bump to their 25-4 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.8 runs over those games. As for St. Martin, they have been struggling recently as they've lost six of their last seven matchups. That's put a noticeable dent in their 12-12 record this season.

Both St. Martin and Northwest Rankin just can't seem to miss. The Yellow Jackets have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 8.7 hits per game. However, it's not like Northwest Rankin struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 3.6 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more softball content.