Softball Game Preview: Tampa Catholic Crusaders vs. Trinity Catholic Celtics

Tampa Catholic is on a five-game streak of home wins, while Trinity Catholic is on a four-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. Tampa Catholic will welcome Trinity Catholic at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Tampa Catholic took a 11-run defeat the last time they faced off against Palm Harbor University, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. Tampa Catholic sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-5 victory over Palm Harbor University on Wednesday.

Olivia Ricciardi spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and four unearned) runs on five hits and racked up 11 Ks. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in nine consecutive appearances.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Raegan Kirchen, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. That triple marked the first that she hit this season. Josslynn Grimsley was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.

Meanwhile, Trinity Catholic was able to grind out a solid win over Land O' Lakes on Saturday, taking the game 7-3.

Caylee Barbe was a major factor no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over six innings while giving up three earned runs off five hits. Barbe was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI.

Barbe wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Hailey Wilson, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.

Trinity Catholic has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight matchups. That's provided a massive bump to their 12-6 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.1 runs on average over those games. Tampa Catholic's win bumped their record up to 7-5.