Softball Game Preview: Lemoore Tigers vs. Mission Oak Hawks

Lemoore hasn't had much luck against Mission Oak recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Tigers will host the Hawks at 4:30 p.m. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Lemoore will bounce into Friday's contest after beating Tulare Union, who they had gone 0-9 against in their nine prior meetings. The Tigers came out on top against the Tribe by a score of 7-2 on Wednesday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Tigers.

Meanwhile, Mission Oak entered their tilt with Tulare Western on Wednesday with four consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with five. They never let the Mustangs get on the board and left with an 11-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Hawks, who have now won seven games by six runs or more so far this season.

Mission Oak got a massive performance out of Taylor Shepherd, who went 2-for-3 with four RBI, one triple, and one run. That's the most RBI Shepherd has posted since back in March of 2024. Another player making a difference was Journee Hernandez, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI, two runs, and one double.

Mission Oak was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .444. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .321 or higher in six consecutive matches.

Mission Oak pushed their record up to 12-9-1 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.7 runs on average over those games. As for Lemoore, their victory bumped their record up to 5-16-1.

Lemoore might still be hurting after the 16-2 defeat they got from Mission Oak when the teams last played back in April. Will the Tigers have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.