Softball Recap: Tampa Catholic Crusaders vs. Academy at the Lakes Wildcats
Tampa Catholic won against Shorecrest Prep back in March with 11 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Wednesday. The Tampa Catholic Crusaders came out on top against the Academy at the Lakes Wildcats by a score of 11-8. Winning may never get old, but Tampa Catholic sure is getting used to it with their fourth in a row.
Olivia Ricciardi spent all seven innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and seven unearned) runs on ten hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Josslyn Grimsley, who fired off three home runs, four runs, and four RBI while going 3-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Brooke O'Gradney, who went 2-for-3 with a home run and three runs.
On Academy at the Lakes' side, Shannon Kendall put in work no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over five innings while giving up five earned (and one unearned) runs off four hits. Kendall has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in three consecutive pitching appearances. Kendall was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBI.
In other batting news, Juliana Ries made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-5. Alexis Gattuso was another key contributor, going 2-for-2 with an RBI.
Even though they lost, Academy at the Lakes didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with 11 strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Tampa Catholic only tossed five.
Tampa Catholic is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 8-5 record this season. As for Academy at the Lakes, their defeat was their third straight at home, which dropped their record down to 14-10.
Tampa Catholic will take on Land O' Lakes at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. As for Academy at the Lakes, they will get a bit of extra time to process the loss as their next game is a ways off. They'll take on Academy of the Holy Names at 6:00 p.m. on April 25th.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
