The Gaylord Blue Devils will take on the Boyne City Ramblers at 4:15 p.m. on Thursday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, these teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Gaylord is returning to their home field after beating Petoskey on theirs, despite the fact Petoskey has dominated at home this season. The Blue Devils walked away with an 11-8 win over the Northmen on Tuesday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Blue Devils.
Nora Bethuy was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned (and six unearned) runs off nine hits. That's the most strikeouts she has posted since back in April. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 3-for-5 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run.
Makayla Kozlowski
| 05/20/25 @ Petoskey | 3 |
| 05/17/25 vs Portage Central | 2 |
| 05/10/25 vs Dakota | 2 |
| 04/30/25 @ Traverse City West | 2 |
| 04/19/25 vs Howell | 2 |
In other batting news, Jenna Sircely and Makayla Kozlowski did most of the damage at the plate: Sircely went 2-for-4 with two runs, two RBI, and one double, while Kozlowski got on base in all five of her plate appearances with one run and one RBI. The dominant performance also gave Kozlowski a new career-high in hits (three). Another player making a difference was Aubrey Jones, who went 1-for-4 with two runs and two RBI.
Meanwhile, Boyne City waltzed into their contest on Tuesday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They put the hurt on the Stags with a sharp 17-5 victory.
Sadie Bush was a standout: she went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI. That home run was her first of the season. Josie LaCombe was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs.
Boyne City lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. That's the most home runs they've managed all season.
Gaylord pushed their record up to 19-3 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.2 runs on average over those games. As for Boyne City, their win bumped their record up to 8-12.
Thursday's matchup will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Gaylord hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .329. However, it's not like Boyne City struggles in that department as they've averaged .317. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Everything went Gaylord's way against Boyne City when the teams last played back in April of 2021, as Gaylord made off with a 13-1 victory. Will the Blue Devils repeat their success, or do the Ramblers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
