The Pine Prairie Panthers will face off against the Church Point Bears at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The timing is sure in Pine Prairie's favor as the squad sits on 11 straight wins at home while Church Point has been banged up by six consecutive losses on the road.
Pine Prairie's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They put the hurt on Crowley with a sharp 6-0 win. Considering the Panthers have won 13 matches by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Kynnedi Ware made a big impact no matter where she played. She didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out 14 over six innings pitched. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 16 consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-4.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Josie Vidrine, who scored a run while going 3-for-4. Sydney Fontenot was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one stolen base and two RBI.
Pine Prairie hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least two strikeouts batters in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Church Point). Everything went their way against Lake Charles College Prep on Tuesday as they made off with a 19-0 victory. The team's explosion at the plate also rewarded the Bears with their most commanding win of the season.
Like Pine Prairie, Church Point also got a great game from a two-way player: Ryleigh Hooks. On the mound, she pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Hooks was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with one RBI.
In other batting news, Kylee Fruge was a standout: she scored three runs while going 2-for-2. That's the most hits she has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Ava Ashbaugh, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-2.
Pine Prairie has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 15 of their last 16 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 23-3 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.2 runs on average over those games. As for Church Point, their victory bumped their record up to 6-11-1.
Wednesday's matchup might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Pine Prairie has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .452. However, it's not like Church Point struggles in that department as they've averaged .469. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Pine Prairie took their win against Church Point when the teams last played back in March of 2024 by a conclusive 16-1 score. Do the Panthers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Bears turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
