Softball Game Preview: Academy of Our Lady of Peace Pilots vs. Christian Patriots

The Academy of Our Lady of Peace Pilots will venture away from home to face off against the Christian Patriots at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Academy of Our Lady of Peace's hitters haven't had much luck over their past five games, but Thursday's contest will give them a chance to turn things around.

Academy of Our Lady of Peace fell victim to Cathedral Catholic and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They came up short against the Dons, falling 6-0.

Meanwhile, Christian narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past Patrick Henry 3-2.

Christian got a great performance from Ava Barrios as she struck out eight batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off five hits. That's the most strikeouts Barrios has posted since back in March.

At the plate, Alyssa McCurty was excellent, going 1-for-2 with one home run and two RBI.

Christian hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Patrick Henry struck out eight times.

Christian has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 12 of their last 14 matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 19-5-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Academy of Our Lady of Peace, their loss dropped their record down to 6-15.

Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Academy of Our Lady of Peace hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.7 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.

Academy of Our Lady of Peace might still be hurting after the 11-1 defeat they got from Christian when the teams last played two weeks ago. Can the Pilots avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.