Pirates
| 03/11/25 vs Lincoln | 11 |
| 03/08/25 vs Rio Linda | 7 |
| 03/08/25 @ Argonaut | 9 |
| 03/07/25 vs Bear River | 10 |
| 03/07/25 vs Rio Linda | 4 |
| + 4 more games |
The Wheatland Pirates are taking a road trip to challenge the Oakmont Vikings at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Wheatland is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.1 runs per game this season.
Wheatland will bounce into Thursday's game after beating Lincoln, who they had gone 1-6 against in their seven prior meetings. Wheatland came out on top against Lincoln by a score of 11-6 last Tuesday.
Chasidy Sills made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching four innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. She has been consistent : she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two RBI.
In other batting news, Raelynn Hulsey and Ella Woolery did most of the damage at the plate: Hulsey scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances, while Woolery scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-3. That stolen base marked the first that Hulsey snagged this season. Another player making a difference was Gwendylyn Chan, who scored two runs while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, Oakmont didn't have quite enough to beat Rio Americano on Wednesday and fell 16-15.
Addison Turner led a balanced group of hitters, scoring four runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-5. The team also got some help courtesy of Maria Gonzales, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in three of her six plate appearances.
Even though they lost, Oakmont was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .474. This was only their first loss (out of four games) when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Oakmont's defeat ended a five-game streak of away wins dating back to last season and brought them to 4-3. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Wheatland, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 5-4 record this season.
Oakmont's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Wheatland has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 10.1 hits per game. It's a different story for Oakmont, though, as they've been averaging 11 hits. Given Wheatland's sizable advantage in that area, Oakmont will need to find a way to close that gap.
Wheatland came up short against Oakmont when the teams last played back in April of 2023, falling 7-3. Can Wheatland avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
