Softball Game Preview: Ironton Fighting Tigers vs. Blazer Tomcats

The Ironton Fighting Tigers will head out on the road to challenge the Blazer Tomcats at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Ironton is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.8 runs per game this season.

On Wednesday, Ironton earned an 8-5 victory over Portsmouth. The win continues a trend for the Fighting Tigers in their matchups with the Trojans: they've now won five in a row.

Layla Townsend

Stolen Base (Career)

04/09/25 @ Portsmouth	3
04/01/25 @ Fairland	1
03/28/25 vs Portsmouth	1
03/22/25 vs Minford	1
05/13/24 vs Meigs	1

Layla Townsend was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out nine batters over seven innings while giving up three earned (and two unearned) runs off ten hits (and not a single walk). She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 2-for-5. Those three stolen bases gave her a new career-high.

In other batting news, Khamil Martin was incredible, firing off two home runs, three runs, and three RBI while getting on base in all five of her plate appearances. That's the most home runs she has posted since back in April of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Miley Bias, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of her five plate appearances.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Blazer). They were the clear victors by a 22-12 margin over Russell on Tuesday. The result was nothing new for the Tomcats, who have now won four contests by ten runs or more so far this season.

Blazer is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-4 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.8 runs over those games. As for Ironton, their record now sits at 7-1.