Softball Preview: Wilmington Wildcats vs. Beecher Bobcats
Wilmington is 0-4 against Beecher since March of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Wilmington Wildcats will be playing at home against the Beecher Bobcats at 4:30 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Beecher is hoping to do on Friday what St. Anne couldn't on Thursday: put an end to Wilmington's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Wilmington put the hurt on St. Anne with a sharp 15-3 victory.
Wilmington got a great performance from Lexi Strohm as she didn't allow a single earned run and only two hits while striking out seven over 4.1 innings pitched. Strohm has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in three consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Molly Southall, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with a home run, two runs, and a stolen base. The team also got some help courtesy of Allyssa Johnston, who scored two runs while getting on base in all three of her plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Beecher waltzed into their game on Tuesday with 13 straight wins... but they left with 14. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Crusaders an 11-0 shutout. Give Beecher's pitching crew some credit: that's the team's third straight shutout.
Taylor Norkus made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. Norkus was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, Makenzie Johnson was incredible, firing off two home runs, three runs, and a double while going 3-for-3. Abby Papas was another key contributor, going 1-for-3 with a home run and four RBI.
Wilmington has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won ten of their last 11 matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 17-4 record this season. As for Beecher, their win was their 17th straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 25-1.
Both the pair just can't seem to miss. Wilmington has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 11 hits per game. However, it's not like Beecher struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 2. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Wilmington might still be hurting after the 11-1 loss they got from Beecher in their previous meeting back in April of 2023. Will Wilmington have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
