Softball Preview: Saugus Centurions vs. Westlake Warriors
The Saugus Centurions will be playing at home against the Westlake Warriors at 2:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Saugus is headed into the contest fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Castaic a 25-0 shutout on Thursday. Winning may never get old, but Saugus sure is getting used to it with their seventh in a row.
Kona Ramsbottom tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and only two hits while striking out seven over five innings pitched. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Saugus let Kaylie Stauffer and Amelia Johnson loose on the outfield. Stauffer went 3-for-4 with a home run, seven RBI, and a double, while Johnson went 2-for-3 with a home run, three RBI, and two runs. Stauffer is on a roll when it comes to home runs, as she's now launched at least one in the last four games she's played. Brianna Coe was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 2-for-2.
Meanwhile, Westlake made easy work of Simi Valley on Thursday and carried off a 9-2 win.
Presley Waters spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and one unearned) run on seven hits.
At the plate, Dani Shinko was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Samy Gallegos, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Saugus is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten games, which provided a massive bump to their 17-8 record this season. As for Westlake, their victory bumped their record up to 17-7.
Friday's matchup might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Saugus has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .438. However, it's not like Westlake struggles in that department as they've averaged .454. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Saugus came up short against Westlake in their previous meeting back in March, falling 6-1. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Westlake's Linden McCarl, who struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. Now that Saugus knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
