The Lake Park Lancers will face off against the Glenbard North Panthers at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Glenbard North will challenge a team with plenty of momentum: Lake Park extended their winning streak to five on Tuesday. The Lancers were the clear victors by a 9-2 margin over Buffalo Grove.
Kaylee Fritzler spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned runs on three hits and racked up seven Ks.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Ava Arenz, who fired off two home runs and five RBI while going 2-for-4. What's more, she posted two runs, the most she's had since back in April. Ariana O'Connell was another key player, going 3-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and one double.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Lake Park kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Buffalo Grove only managed three hits.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Glenbard North, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. Everything went their way against Geneva on Monday as they made off with a 15-5 victory. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Panthers considering their one-run performance the game before.
Aubry Miller was incredible, firing off three home runs and seven RBI while going 3-for-3. The team also got some help courtesy of Lauren Kozlovsky, who went 2-for-4 with one home run and two RBI.
Glenbard North has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 16-5 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.8 runs over those games. As for Lake Park, their victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 18-5.
Wednesday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Lake Park hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .339. However, it's not like Glenbard North struggles in that department as they've averaged .384. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Lake Park came out on top in a nail-biter against Glenbard North in their previous matchup back in April, sneaking past 3-1. Will the Lancers repeat their success, or do the Panthers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
