Softball Game Preview: Cheboygan Chiefs vs. Gladstone Braves

The Cheboygan Chiefs are taking a road trip to challenge the Gladstone Braves at 1:00 p.m. on Friday.

Cheboygan lost 8-2 to St. Francis on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Gladstone had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 10 runs) and they went ahead and made it three on Tuesday. They put the hurt on the Knights with a sharp 15-0 win. The Braves' pitching crew has been rock solid lately; the team hasn't given up a run in their last three games.

Tia Schone made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out ten over four innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 14 consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI.

In other batting news, Gladstone let Lauren Sundquist and Emma Trombley run wild. Sundquist went 3-for-4 with three RBI, two runs, and one stolen base, while Trombley got on base in all three of her plate appearances with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. That's the most stolen bases Trombley has posted over her last nine matches. Another player making a difference was Molly Matthews, who earned three runs and one stolen base.

Gladstone's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 24-2. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.0 runs on average over those games. As for Cheboygan, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-11.