Ridgeline is on a nine-game streak of home wins (dating back to last season), while Bear River is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Ridgeline Riverhawks will host the Bear River Bears at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average, (Ridgeline 3.9, Bear River 2.2) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Ridgeline's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They were the clear victor by a 9-0 margin over Sky View. The victory was a breath of fresh air for the Riverhawks as it put an end to their three-game losing streak.
Brielle Gardiner
| 03/11/25 vs Sky View | 3 |
| 03/08/25 vs Central Catholic | 1 |
| 03/08/25 vs Murrieta Mesa | 1 |
| 03/07/25 vs Agoura | 0 |
| 03/07/25 vs Torrance | 1 |
| + 7 more games |
Brielle Gardiner made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out seven over seven innings pitched. Gardiner was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with one triple, two RBI, and one double. That's the most hits she has posted since back in May of 2024.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ava Buttars, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Those two hits gave her a new career-high. Olivia Nielsen was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two RBI.
Ridgeline was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .429. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Bear River faced Riverton in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Wednesday. Bear River fell just short of Riverton by a score of 7-5. It was the first time this season that the Bears let down their fans at home.
Kate Wilson spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered five earned (and two unearned) runs on 13 hits and racked up 11 Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts any time she's pitched this season.
At the plate, Bella Dougals was cooking despite her team's loss, going 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Luci Roche, who went 1-for-4 with one home run and three RBI.
Ridgeline's win bumped their record up to 3-4. As for Bear River, their loss was their first of the season and makes their record 7-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Ridgeline hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.7 home runs per game. However, it's not like Bear River struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.6 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Everything went Ridgeline's way against Bear River in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, as Ridgeline made off with a 9-3 victory. Does Ridgeline have another victory up their sleeve, or will Bear River turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
