Softball Game Preview: Cedar Ridge Raiders vs. Round Rock Dragons

Cedar Ridge and Round Rock are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2018, but likely not for long. The Raiders will venture away from home to take on the Dragons at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Cedar Ridge is coming into the match hot, having won their last 15 games.

Round Rock's hitters are going to have their work cut out for them on Thursday: Cedar Ridge hadn't allowed a single run the last three times they've hit the field. The Raiders never let Hutto get on the board and left with a 5-0 win on Friday.

Caitlin Benningfield made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only two hits while striking out nine over seven innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 11 consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.

Gabby Zulfekar

Hits (Career)

04/11/25 @ Hutto	4
04/12/24 @ Round Rock	3
04/05/24 vs Vandegrift	3
04/05/25 @ Vandegrift	2
03/25/25 vs McNeil	2

In other batting news, Gabby Zulfekar was incredible, going a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Those four hits gave her a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Quinn Rives, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Round Rock). Everything went their way against Manor on Tuesday as they made off with a 19-0 victory. The result was nothing new for the Dragons, who have now won seven contests by seven runs or more so far this season.

Cedar Ridge pushed their record up to 16-3 with the win, which was their seventh straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 14.4 runs over those games. As for Round Rock, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 12-8.

Cedar Ridge came out on top in a nail-biter against Round Rock when the teams last played back in March, sneaking past 7-6. 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.