The Varina Blue Devils will venture away from home to take on the Matoaca Warriors at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Varina has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the contest with six straight defeats, while Matoaca will come in with 13 straight wins.
Things were looking good for Varina after they put the first run on the board on Thursday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They fell just short of Hermitage by a score of 10-9.
Julia Anderson and Rylee Geer stepped up to the plate in a big way. Anderson went 3-for-5 with six RBI and one double, while Geer got on base in all five of her plate appearances with five runs and one stolen base.
Meanwhile, Matoaca put their dominant pitcher on display in the team's fifth consecutive shutout on Thursday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Thomas Dale an 8-0 shutout. The Warriors might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 14 matchups by six runs or more this season.
Kaylee Hodges made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, keeping things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 17 over seven innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up a single earned run in 14 consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI. Those two doubles gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, Raven Crabtree was incredible, going 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one triple. That's the most stolen bases she has posted since back in April. Another player making a difference was Hayden Longacre, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
Matoaca hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least one batters in three consecutive games.
Matoaca's record is now 17-1. As for Varina, their loss dropped their record down to 6-9.
Friday's contest might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Varina has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .637. However, it's not like Matoaca struggles in that department as they've averaged .477. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Varina suffered a grim 10-0 defeat to Matoaca in their previous meeting back in March of 2022. Can the Blue Devils avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
