Softball Game Preview: Long Rebels vs. Abbeville Yellowjackets

Long is a perfect 10-0 against Abbeville since April of 2018 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The Rebels will host the Yellowjackets at 3:30 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Long has 14 straight victories, Abbeville has 12 straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.

For some reason, the away team has come away with the win the last four times Long and Ariton have met, but the home crowd finally got their W on Thursday. The Rebels were the clear victors by a 10-2 margin over the Purple Cats. Considering the Rebels have won 12 contests by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.

Anna Claire Free

Batters Struck Out (Career)

04/03/25 vs Ariton	14
03/18/25 @ Ariton	13
03/20/25 @ Carroll	10
02/25/25 @ Pike Liberal Arts	10
03/17/25 @ Abbeville	9

Anna Claire Free made a big impact no matter where she played. She struck out 14 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off one hit. Those 14 strikeouts gave her a new career-high. She was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring four runs and stealing four bases while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. With that strong performance, she is now averaging an impressive 1.1 stolen bases per game.

In other batting news, Kaylie Joseph was incredible, going 2-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and one double. Another player making a difference was Kaylie Foster, who scored two runs while going 3-for-4.

Meanwhile, Abbeville scored the most runs they've had this season on Thursday, but it wasn't enough. They lost 20-5 to Houston County.

Long's win was their tenth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 21-2. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Abbeville, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-5.

Long took their win against Abbeville when the teams last played back in March by a conclusive 15-0 score. Do the Rebels have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Yellowjackets turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.