Softball Preview: Hickory Ridge Ragin' Bulls vs. Mount Pleasant Tigers
After two games on the road, Hickory Ridge is heading back home. They will take on the Mount Pleasant Tigers at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Both teams come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Friday, Hickory Ridge beat South Iredell 7-3.
Embler Kristyn made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off eight hits (and not a single walk). Kristyn has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in three consecutive pitching appearances. Kristyn was even better at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a home run, four RBI, and a stolen base.
In other pitching news, Alexis Smereka looked comfortable as she tossed 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (she also only allowed one walk). She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive pitching appearances.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Chloe Woodward, who scored two runs and stole four bases while going 1-for-3. Tori Kirkpatrick was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing a base while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Mount Pleasant's hitters rose to the challenge against a Cardinals pitching crew that boasted an average of only 3.46 points allowed on Friday. Mount Pleasant walked away with a 10-6 victory over Union Academy.
Like Hickory Ridge, Mount Pleasant also got a great game from a two-way player: Savannah Coln. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run over four innings pitched. Coln was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with a home run and two runs.
In other batting news, Mount Pleasant got a massive performance out of Maggie Honeycutt, who scored a run while going 3-for-3. Another player making a difference was Brooke Wright, who went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI.
Hickory Ridge's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 12-4. As for Mount Pleasant, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 9-3 record this season.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Monday. Hickory Ridge hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.4 home runs per game. However, it's not like Mount Pleasant struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.8. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Everything went Hickory Ridge's way against Mount Pleasant when the teams last played back in April of 2023 as Hickory Ridge made off with a 9-1 victory. Does Hickory Ridge have another victory up their sleeve, or will Mount Pleasant turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
