Softball Preview: Escambia Gators vs. Pine Forest Eagles
The Escambia Gators will be staying on the road on Monday to face off against the Pine Forest Eagles at 6:00 p.m. Escambia is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 9.6 runs per game this season.
In what's become a running theme this season, Escambia gave their fans yet another huge victory on Wednesday. They blew past Destin 12-1.
Madelynn Ladner was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Ladner was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 3-for-3.
In other batting news, Escambia let Laney Moss and Madison Degnan loose on the outfield. Moss went 2-for-4 with a home run, two stolen bases, and two runs, while Degnan went 3-for-4 with four stolen bases, a triple, and a run. The team also got some help courtesy of Gwen Verble, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, Pine Forest was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their third straight defeat. They fell 9-5 to Baker.
Tiara Hall made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. Mary Brockett was another key contributor, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with two stolen bases and an RBI.
Escambia's win bumped their record up to 8-12. As for Pine Forest, their loss dropped their record down to 7-9.
Pine Forest's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Escambia hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .354. It's a different story for Pine Forest, though, as they've only averaged .235. Will they be able to contain Escambia's hitters?
Escambia came up short against Pine Forest in their previous matchup back in March, falling 7-4. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Pine Forest's Ellie Rudd, who struck out 12 batters over eight innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off nine hits. Now that Escambia knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
