Jefferson Area and Perry are an even 3-3 against one another since May of 2018, but likely not for long. The Falcons will venture away from home to square off against the Pirates at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Jefferson Area came out on top against Conneaut on Wednesday thanks in part to the team's impressive seven-run fifth inning. The Falcons were the clear victors by a 12-1 margin over the Spartans. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Falcons considering their one-run performance the matchup before.
Rylee Demattia
| 04/30/25 vs Conneaut | 5 |
| 04/17/25 vs Perry | 3 |
| 04/12/25 vs Chalker | 3 |
| 04/16/25 vs West Geauga | 2 |
| 04/29/25 vs Sharon | 1 |
Jefferson Area let Rylee Demattia and Marillia Matuz run wild. Demattia went 2-for-4 with five RBI and one double, while Matuz got on base in three of her four plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs. Those five RBI gave Demattia a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Alaina Barress, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.
Jefferson Area always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .645. They are a perfect 7-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, Perry came tearing into Tuesday's contest with seven straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.4 runs), and they left with even more momentum. They never let the Spartans get on the board and left with a 15-0 win. The Pirates' pitching crew has been rock solid lately; the team hasn't given up a run in their last three games.
Madelyn Rupert was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out seven over five innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in five consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
In other batting news, Perry got a massive performance out of Arianna Rogers, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Elise Strahan was another key player, getting on base in all four of her plate appearances with three runs, two doubles, and two RBI.
Perry's victory was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 16-5. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Jefferson Area, the victory got them back to even at 10-10.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Jefferson Area hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.8 home runs per game. However, it's not like Perry struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.8 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Jefferson Area was able to grind out a solid win over Perry in their previous matchup back in April, winning 7-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Falcons since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
