Softball Game Preview: Highland Scots vs. Liberty Patriots

The Highland Scots will challenge the Liberty Patriots at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Highland had to travel to play their first game of the season, but the final result was worth the trip. They put the hurt on Golden Valley with a sharp 10-4 win on Wednesday. The Scots haven't had any issues with the Bulldogs recently, as the game was their ninth consecutive victory against them.

Lilliana Garcia made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off only two hits. Garcia was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 1-for-2.

In other batting news, Highland let Madelyn Gonzalez and Nevaeh Rodriquez run wild. Gonzalez scored three runs and stole four bases while going 3-for-4, while Rodriquez scored two runs and stole three bases while going 3-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Haley Nielsen, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI.

Highland hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most two strikeouts in four consecutive matches dating back to last season.

Meanwhile, while Liberty put up plenty of runs on Wednesday, the same can't be said for California City. Liberty was the clear victors by an 18-0 margin over California City.

Liberty got a massive performance out of Lydia Halbrook, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 3-for-3. What's more, Halbrook posted three RBI, the most she's had since back in February of 2024. Aubree Harl was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while going 2-for-3.

Highland suffered a grim 9-0 defeat to Liberty in their previous meeting back in April of 2021. Can Highland avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.