Roxana is 1-8 against Salem since April of 2022 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Shells will look to defend their home field against the Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Roxana is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They never let Metro-East Lutheran get on the board and left with a 21-0 win on Wednesday. The Shells might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won ten matchups by six runs or more this season.
Kassidy Schuyler was a major factor no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits (and only one walk). She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with two RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Josie Brannon, who went 2-for-3 with four runs, four RBI, and one triple. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Madison John, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with four runs, two RBI, and one double.
Roxana was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .529. They are a perfect 10-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Salem made easy work of Lawrenceville on Saturday and carried off a 12-1 victory. With that win, the Wildcats brought their scoring average up to 6.2 runs per game.
Katee Sellers was a standout: she went 3-for-4 with three RBI, two runs, and one triple. Jaelyn Keller was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Salem's victory bumped their record up to 6-15. As for Roxana, their win bumped their record up to 13-6.
Salem's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Roxana has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 10.5 hits per game. It's a different story for Salem, though, as they've been averaging 10.3 hits. Given Roxana's sizable advantage in that area, the Wildcats will need to find a way to close that gap.
Roxana couldn't quite get it done against Salem in their previous meeting on Thursday as they fell 13-8. Can the Shells avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
