Softball Preview: McNary Celtics vs. West Salem Titans
McNary is 8-2 against West Salem since April of 2019, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Tuesday. The McNary Celtics will head out on the road to face off against the West Salem Titans at 5:00 p.m. Both teams come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
McNary's hitters will try to repeat the strong performance they gave on Wednesday, when they got past South Salem's usually-dominant pitching crew. McNary was the clear victor by a 14-0 margin over South Salem. The win made it back-to-back victories for McNary.
Natalie Macik made a big impact no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out six over five innings pitched. Macik was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ali Martinez, who scored two runs while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was Aspynn Westby, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, West Salem came tearing into Wednesday's match with six straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 6 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They walked away with a 4-1 victory over the Olympians.
Braeli Martin spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered one run (which was unearned) on three hits and racked up 12 Ks. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in 13 consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Mya Ward, who went 3-for-3 with a home run, two runs, and two doubles. Kali Parks was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
McNary's record is now 7-11. As for West Salem, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 13 of their last 14 games, which provided a nice bump to their 15-5 record this season.
McNary couldn't quite finish off West Salem in their previous matchup last Wednesday and fell 9-7. Can McNary avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
