Softball Recap: Thursday's Victory Is Western Branch's Sixth in Last Seven Outings

Western Branch hadn't done well against Grassfield recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Thursday. The Bruins had just enough and edged out the Grizzlies 4-3. Surprisingly, this marked the Bruins' fourth straight game in which the away team has come away the victor.

Haylee Bandura

Batters Struck Out

05/01/25 @ Grassfield	7
04/24/25 @ Great Bridge	12
04/10/25 vs Isle of Wight Academy	5
04/01/25 @ Greenbrier Christian Academy	8
03/28/25 @ Landstown	5
03/27/25 @ Deep Creek	6

Haylee Bandura spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and two unearned) runs on six hits and racked up seven Ks. She has been consistent: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in six consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Marissa Bernheimer, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with one home run and three RBI. She has been hot recently, having posted three or more RBI the last three times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Maddie Lemasters, who went 3-for-4 with one run, one double, and one RBI.

Western Branch is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-2 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.0 runs over those games. As for Grassfield, they moved to 11-2 with that defeat, which also ended their ten-game winning streak.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Western Branch will welcome Nansemond-Suffolk Academy at 5:45 p.m. on Monday. As for Grassfield, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Kellam at 5:45 p.m. on Monday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (the Grizzlies 2, the Knights 1.8) so any runs scored will be well earned.