Preview: Niceville Eagles vs. Pace Patriots
The Niceville Eagles will head out on the road to square off against the Pace Patriots at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The pair have allowed few runs on average, (Niceville: 2.7, Pace: 1.1) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Last Thursday, Niceville sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 2-1 win over Tate.
Chloe Bailey looked comfortable as she tossed 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (she also didn't allow any walks). She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Niceville saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Emma Kowal, who scored two runs while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Carnley Summerlin, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Meanwhile, Pace entered their tilt with Jay with two consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with three. They came out on top against the Royals by a score of 5-2 on Tuesday. Five seems to be a good number for Pace as the squad scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Jayden Heavener was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She didn't allow a single earned run and only one hit while striking out ten over five innings pitched. Heavener was also big at the plate, going 1-for-4 with a home run.
In other batting news, Abigail McLean was excellent, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Niceville's record is now 5-3-1. As for Pace, they pushed their record up to 11-1 with that win, which was their 17th straight at home dating back to last season.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Niceville has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Pace struggles in that department as they've been averaging 13.4 per game. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Niceville might still be hurting after the 11-0 loss they got from Pace in their previous meeting back in May of 2023. Can Niceville avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
