Softball Preview: Old Lyme Wildcats vs. Haddam-Killingworth Cougars
The Old Lyme Wildcats are on the road again on Monday to play the Haddam-Killingworth Cougars at 3:45 p.m. Both teams come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Old Lyme will head into Tuesday's game on the come-up: they were handed a two-point defeat in their last contest, but they sure didn't let that happen against Cromwell on Tuesday. Old Lyme blew past Cromwell 14-1. The high-scoring effort was just what Old Lyme needed considering they were shutout in their previous match.
Emma Bayor made a big impact no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out 12 batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit (and only one walk). Bayor has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't pitched less than five innings every time she's pitched this season. Bayor was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
In other batting news, Old Lyme got a massive performance out of Grace Phaneuf, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 3-for-3. Grace Osbourne was another key contributor, going 1-for-2 with two runs, a triple, and an RBI.
Meanwhile, Haddam-Killingworth had just enough and edged Coginchaug Regional out 7-6 on Friday.
The team relied heavily on Bella LaTorre, who went 3-for-4 with five RBI and a double. Another player making a difference was Cheyenne LaTouche, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances.
Old Lyme's record is now 4-1. As for Haddam-Killingworth, their victory was their seventh straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 8-1.
Monday's matchup will be a test for both team's pitchers. Old Lyme hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .321. However, it's not like Haddam-Killingworth struggles in that department as they've averaged .413. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Old Lyme came up short against Haddam-Killingworth when the teams last played back in May of 2023, falling 6-2. Thankfully for Old Lyme, Kaleigh Bodak (who struck out seven batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off four hits) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
