Softball Preview: Palmer Ridge Bears vs. Widefield Gladiators
The Palmer Ridge Bears are on the road again on Sunday to play the Widefield Gladiators at 10:00 a.m. Palmer Ridge is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 11.1 runs per game this season.
Palmer Ridge is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Colorado's top teams: D'Evelyn, who was ranked 21st in their home state at the time (Palmer Ridge was ranked 11th). Palmer Ridge fell just short of D'Evelyn by a score of 6-4 on Friday. The Bears' loss signaled the end of their five-game winning streak.
Ashlyn Short spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered five earned (and one unearned) runs on 11 hits and racked up 11 Ks. Those 11 strikeouts gave her a new career-high.
On the hitting side, Kayleigh Garcia made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs, and a triple. Another player making a difference was Corinna Arellano, who went 2-for-4 with a home run and a double.
She wasn't the only one working in the home runs department: Palmer Ridge lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. This was only their first loss (out of eight games) when they post two or more home runs.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last match, Widefield made sure to put some runs up on the board against Falcon on Friday. Widefield blew past Falcon 15-5. The Gladiators might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 17 matchups by seven runs or more this season.
Widefield got a massive performance out of Taylor Hall, who went 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Evelyn Ibarra, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-3.
Palmer Ridge's defeat dropped their record down to 19-4-1. As for Widefield, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven games, which provided a nice bump to their 19-6 record this season.
Sunday's contest might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Palmer Ridge has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of 0. However, it's not like Widefield struggles in that department as they've averaged 0. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Palmer Ridge suffered a grim 16-0 defeat to Widefield in their previous meeting back in September of 2019. Can Palmer Ridge avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
