The Mountain Ridge Sentinels will challenge the Pleasant Grove Vikings at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday. Mountain Ridge is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 9.8 runs per game this season.
Mountain Ridge heads in on the heels of a playoff matchup on Tuesday. They came up short against Bingham, falling 10-0. The pitching woes were uncharacteristic for the Sentinels, who until this game were averaging 3.71 runs allowed.
Meanwhile, Pleasant Grove faced Westlake in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. The Vikings came out on top against the Thunder by a score of 9-6. The Vikings haven't had any issues with the Thunder recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive victory against them.
Keslie Draney was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she tossed seven innings while giving up three earned (and three unearned) runs off eight hits. Draney was even better at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run and three RBI.
In other batting news, Pleasant Grove got a big performance out of Mary Severe, who went 1-for-2 with one triple, two RBI, and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Allyson Young, who went 2-for-3 with two runs and one double.
Pleasant Grove was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .433. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Westlake only posted a batting average of .286.
Pleasant Grove's win bumped their record up to 24-7. As for Mountain Ridge, the defeat snapped their winning streak at four games and leaves them with a 23-5 record.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Wednesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Mountain Ridge has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.4 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Pleasant Grove struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.1 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Mountain Ridge might still be hurting after the 7-1 loss they got from Pleasant Grove in their previous matchup back in May of 2024. Can the Sentinels avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
