Softball Preview: Saluda Tigers vs. Ninety Six Wildcats
Saluda is on a five-game streak of home wins, while Ninety Six is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Saluda Tigers will take on the Ninety Six Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Saluda is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 9.2 runs per game this season.
Saluda stacked an eighth blowout win onto their ever-increasing hoard on Wednesday. They were the clear victor by an 11-1 margin over Gilbert.
Miller Martin tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run while striking out ten over five innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Jayme Sheaffer and Ella Gentry did most of the damage at the plate: Sheaffer went 1-for-3 with a home run, two runs, and two RBI, while Gentry scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4. Tamia Daniels was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, after some red-hot attacks at the plate in their last five contests, Ninety Six finally came back down to earth on Tuesday. They fell 5-1 to Saluda. The result shouldn't come as a shock considering that's the fewest runs Ninety Six has scored all season.
Ninety Six saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Katie Fortner, who went 2-for-2 with a double.
Saluda's victory bumped their record up to 15-1. As for Ninety Six, their loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 8-3.
Ninety Six's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Saluda has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Ninety Six, though, as they've been averaging only 3.8. Will Saluda keep running through batters, or will Ninety Six buck the trend?
Saluda was able to grind out a solid win over Ninety Six in their previous matchup on Tuesday, winning 5-1. Will Saluda repeat their success, or does Ninety Six have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
