The Emmaus Hornets are taking a road trip to face off against the Whitehall Zephyrs at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Emmaus' pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. Everything went their way against Spring-Ford as they made off with an 8-0 victory. Winning may never get old, but the Hornets sure are getting used to it with their seventh in a row.
The result came thanks to Mari Eiswerth's shutout, as she gave up just four hits and racked up nine Ks. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Sadie Haefeli and Abigail Derr did most of the damage at the plate: Haefeli went a perfect 3-for-3 with three runs, one triple, and one double, while Derr went 3-for-4 with one home run, two RBI, and one double. That's the most hits Derr has posted since back in April of 2024. Another player making a difference was Sydney Bennett, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one home run and two runs.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Emmaus kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least 11 hits in four consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Whitehall got the win against Pocono Mountain East on Saturday by a conclusive 6-0. The win continues a trend for the Zephyrs in their matchups with the Cardinals: they've now won seven in a row.
Morgan Laub was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run over seven innings pitched. Laub was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with two RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jules Muth, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with one run and one double.
Emmaus pushed their record up to 12-2 with the victory, which was their 18th straight at home dating back to last season. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.1 runs on average over those games. As for Whitehall, their record is now 7-3.
Monday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Emmaus hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .447. However, it's not like Whitehall struggles in that department as they've averaged .338. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Emmaus came out on top in a nail-biter against Whitehall in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, sneaking past 3-2. Will the Hornets repeat their success, or do the Zephyrs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
