Softball Game Preview: Skyline Spartans vs. Bothell Cougars

Skyline hasn't had much luck against Bothell recently, but that could start to change on Wednesday. The Spartans will square off against the Cougars at 4:30 p.m. Skyline will be strutting in after a win while Bothell will be coming in after a loss.

Skyline took a 14-run defeat the last time they faced off against Issaquah, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Spartans narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past the Eagles 7-5.

Abby Haapala

Batters Struck Out

04/14/25 @ Issaquah	12
04/11/25 @ Skyview	1
04/10/25 @ Redmond	2
03/31/25 @ Eastlake	9
03/28/25 vs Lake Washington	7
+ 15 more games

Skyline got a great performance from Abby Haapala as she struck out 12 batters over six innings while giving up just two earned (and three unearned) runs off eight hits. That's the most strikeouts Haapala has posted since back in March of 2024.

On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Shea Staley, who went 3-for-5 with one home run, two runs, and one double. Another player making a difference was Emma Dahlgren, who went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI.

Meanwhile, Bothell didn't have quite enough to beat Eastlake on Tuesday and fell 12-11.

Noelle Solvang was cooking despite her team's loss, going 2-for-5 with four RBI, two runs, and one double. Kolbi Schmer was another key player, going 2-for-5 with two RBI and one double.

Skyline is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 12-3 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.9 runs on average over those games. As for Bothell, they now have a losing record of 7-8.

Skyline suffered a grim 7-1 defeat to Bothell in their previous meeting back in April of 2024. Can the Spartans avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.