Palacios hasn't had much luck against Tidehaven recently, but that could start to change on Tuesday. The Sharks are taking a road trip to take on the Tigers at 5:30 p.m. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Palacios was handed a ten-run loss in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Friday. They had just enough and edged out Edna 8-7.
Jahana Starrett was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she pitched seven innings while giving up just two earned (and five unearned) runs off nine hits. Starrett was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 1-for-3. She also put up a double, which was her first of the season.
In other batting news, Riley Critendon was excellent, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-4. Alexandria Elizondo also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
Meanwhile, Tidehaven won against Industrial on Tuesday with 13 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Friday. The Tigers never let Rice Consolidated get on the board and left with a 13-0 win. The Tigers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 11 matches by six runs or more this season.
Like Palacios, Tidehaven also got a great game from a two-way player: Lacie Perez. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Perez has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up a single walk in three consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kailea Freeman, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two triples, two runs, and one stolen base. Those two triples gave her a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Addison Duckett, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 3-for-3.
Tidehaven was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .600. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in four consecutive games.
Tidehaven is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last 12 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 16-11 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.6 runs on average over those games. As for Palacios, their record now sits at 3-9-2.
Palacios suffered a grim 13-0 defeat to Tidehaven in their previous matchup back in March. Can the Sharks avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
