Softball Preview: Wheat Ridge Farmers vs. Pomona Panthers
Wheat Ridge and Pomona are an even 3-3 against one another since August of 2017, but likely not for long. The Wheat Ridge Farmers will head out to square off against the Pomona Panthers at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. Pomona took a loss in their last match and will be looking to turn the tables on Wheat Ridge, who comes in off a win.
On Wednesday, everything went Wheat Ridge's way against Standley Lake as Wheat Ridge made off with a 12-1 victory. The Farmers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won ten games by eight runs or more this season.
Haley Cross was a major factor no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit. Cross was also solid in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with two RBI.
In other batting news, Oliva Hoppe was a standout: she scored two runs while going 2-for-2. Another player making a difference was Claire Tompkins, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Wheat Ridge was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .464. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Standley Lake only posted a batting average of .118.
Meanwhile, Pomona came up short against Golden on Wednesday and fell 12-9. The Panthers haven't had much luck with the Demons recently, as the team's come up short the last six times they've met.
Erica Rivera made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and went 4-for-4 with a home run, five RBI, and three runs. The dominant performance also gave her a new career-high in hits. Another player making a difference was Grace Kerr, who scored three runs while going 2-for-3.
The win made it two in a row for Wheat Ridge and bumps their season record up to 12-10. As for Pomona, their loss dropped their record down to 11-10.
Friday's contest will be a test for both team's pitchers. Wheat Ridge hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of 0. However, it's not like Pomona struggles in that department as they've averaged 0. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Wheat Ridge might still be hurting after the 14-3 defeat they got from Pomona in their previous meeting two weeks ago. Can Wheat Ridge avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
