Softball Game Preview: Whitney Young Dolphins vs. Loyola Academy Ramblers

The Whitney Young Dolphins will take on the Loyola Academy Ramblers at 4:45 p.m. on Thursday. The timing is sure in Whitney Young's favor as the squad sits on three straight wins at home while Loyola Academy has been banged up by six consecutive losses on the road.

On Tuesday, Whitney Young narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past ITW David Speer Academy 3-2.

The team relied heavily on Itzel Jaime, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Loyola Academy fell victim to Fenwick and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 6-0 to the Friars, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior.

Whitney Young is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine games. That's provided a nice bump to their 14-9-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.6 runs on average over those games. As for Loyola Academy, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-11.

Loyola Academy's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Whitney Young hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .327. It's a different story for Loyola Academy, though, as they've only averaged .240. Will they be able to contain Whitney Young's hitters?

Whitney Young came out on top in a nail-biter against Loyola Academy in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, sneaking past 4-3. Will the Dolphins repeat their success, or do the Ramblers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.