The Hillsdale Falcons will challenge the Cardinal Huskies at 5:00 p.m. on Monday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Hillsdale is headed into the match having just posted their closest win since April 14th on Saturday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past Perry 3-2.
Hillsdale's win was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jordyn Fickes, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double. Another was Laci Huber, who went 1-for-3 with one triple and one RBI.
Hillsdale hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They are a perfect 11-0 when they post two or more strikeouts.
Meanwhile, it may have taken eight innings to finish the job, but Cardinal ultimately got the result they hoped for on Monday. They skirted past Newton Falls 12-11.
Natalie Soltis spent all eight innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered 11 runs (all of which were unearned) on seven hits and racked up eight Ks.
At the plate, Cardinal got a massive performance out of Maggie Grant, who got on base in four of her five plate appearances with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI. Emily Pleva was another key player, going 2-for-4 with three stolen bases and four runs.
Hillsdale is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 17-7 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.8 runs over those games. As for Cardinal, their win bumped their record up to 8-10-1.
Cardinal's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Monday. Hillsdale has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Cardinal, though, as they've been averaging only 4.1 strikeouts. Will Hillsdale keep running through batters, or will the Huskies buck the trend? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more softball content.
