Softball Preview: Lecanto Panthers vs. Trinity Catholic Celtics
The Lecanto Panthers will head out on the road to take on the Trinity Catholic Celtics at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Trinity Catholic is hoping to do on Friday what Forest couldn't on Thursday: put an end to Lecanto's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Lecanto was the clear victor by a 7-1 margin over Forest.
Abigail Males spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on four hits and racked up 13 Ks. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in six consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Paris Pollard was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4. She continues to roll, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Melissa Plante, who scored a run while going 3-for-4.
Meanwhile, Trinity Catholic scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Tuesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Belmont a 15-0 shutout. The win made it back-to-back victories for Trinity Catholic.
Caylee Barbe was a major factor no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, keeping things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. Barbe was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
In other batting news, Trinity Catholic let Kristina Fogelman and Emma Simms loose on the outfield. Fogelman scored three runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-5, while Simms went 2-for-3 with three runs, a triple, and two RBI. Dakota Cobb was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Lecanto has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests, which provided a massive bump to their 10-9 record this season. As for Trinity Catholic, their win bumped their record up to 18-6.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Lecanto has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Trinity Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.1. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Lecanto couldn't quite finish off Trinity Catholic when the teams last played back in April of 2019 and fell 10-8. Thankfully for Lecanto, Emma Wyman (who struck out 13 batters over seven innings while giving up five earned (and three unearned) runs off seven hits) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
