Softball Game Preview: Salem Sundevils vs. Bayside Marlins

The Salem Sundevils will head out on the road to face off against the Bayside Marlins at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Neither of those teams managed to put together many runs in their previous contests, so the offenses might be a little more motivated than usual.

Salem came up short against Landstown on Tuesday, falling 8-2. The Sundevils have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Lauren Burchuk

Base on Balls Against

05/06/25 vs Landstown	1
05/01/25 vs Cape Henry Collegiate	1
04/29/25 vs Princess Anne	0
04/25/25 vs Nansemond River	1

Lauren Burchuk spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and six unearned) runs on 11 hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Salem saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kiera Dindial, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI.

Meanwhile, Bayside hadn't done well against Kempsville recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. The Marlins narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past the Chiefs 2-1. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Marlins.

Bayside also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Kennedy Allen gave up only one earned run on three hits.

Bayside's win was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-9. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Salem, their loss dropped their record down to 5-9.

Salem suffered a grim 11-0 defeat to Bayside when the teams last played two weeks ago. Can the Sundevils avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.