Softball Game Preview: James Madison Warhawks vs. Western Branch Bruins

The James Madison Warhawks will challenge the Western Branch Bruins at 10:00 a.m. on Friday. James Madison will be looking to extend their current 13-game winning streak.

James Madison is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They walked away with a 5-1 victory over Lake Braddock.

Meanwhile, Western Branch put their dominant pitcher on display in the team's fifth consecutive shutout on Tuesday. They put the hurt on Hylton with a sharp 7-0 win. Considering the Bruins have won 14 matches by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.

Not much got past Haylee Bandura, who gave up just four hits and racked up six Ks to keep Hylton off the board. Bandura has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in nine consecutive appearances.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Maddie Lemasters, who went 2-for-4 with one home run and three RBI. She is on a roll when it comes to home runs, as she's now launched at least one in each of the last three games she's played. Anna Kerns also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.

Western Branch was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .379. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Hylton only posted a batting average of .182.

James Madison pushed their record up to 26-2 with the victory, which was their 29th straight at home dating back to last season. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.7 runs over those games. As for Western Branch, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 14 of their last 15 games. That's provided a nice bump to their 22-3 record this season.