The Burney Raiders are taking a road trip to square off against the Los Molinos Bulldogs at 3:00 p.m. on Friday. Burney will be looking to extend their current seven-game winning streak.
Burney is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on Plumas Charter with a sharp 22-4 win on Thursday. The result was nothing new for the Raiders, who have now won 11 matches by seven runs or more so far this season.
Mia Perez was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one walk any time she's pitched this season. She was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in four of her five plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Alyssa Hawkins, who got on base in all five of her plate appearances with three runs, three RBI, and one double. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Aimee Hampton, who got on base in three of her five plate appearances with two runs and two RBI.
Burney always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .578. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Los Molinos was not the first on the board on Tuesday, but they got there more often. They walked away with a 4-1 victory over Chester. The Bulldogs haven't had any issues with the Volcanoes recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive win against them.
Like Burney, Los Molinos also got a great game from a two-way player: Addison Jones. On the mound, she struck out seven batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits (and only one walk). Jones was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
In other batting news, Karina Garcia was excellent, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two RBI. Paige Williams was another key player, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
Los Molinos' victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 20-5-1. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.3 runs on average over those games. As for Burney, their record now sits at 16-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Burney has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 11.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Los Molinos struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Burney came out on top in a nail-biter against Los Molinos when the teams last played back in April, sneaking past 5-4. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Raiders since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
