Ironwood Ridge has won six straight games at home (dating back to last season), while Salpointe Catholic has won six straight on the road also dating back to last season, but those streaks won't matter much on Tuesday. Ironwood Ridge will host Salpointe Catholic at 4:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Ironwood Ridge had to skate by with only a two-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the 11-run drubbing they dealt Casa Grande on Friday. Ironwood Ridge never let Casa Grande get on the board and left with an 11-0 victory.
Hayden Bores tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run over five innings pitched.
On the hitting side, Elizabeth Smith was a standout: she scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. Joliee Romero was another key player, scoring a run while going 2-for-4.
Ironwood Ridge was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .448. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their batting average total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Salpointe Catholic made easy work of Walden Grove on Thursday and carried off a 10-4 win.
Isabel Otero was incredible, going 3-for-4 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. Those three RBI gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Molli Daley, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 4-for-5.
Salpointe Catholic has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight games. That's provided a nice bump to their 12-3-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.0 runs over those games. Ironwood Ridge's win bumped their record up to 10-4.
Both Ironwood Ridge and Salpointe Catholic just can't seem to miss. Ironwood Ridge has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 8.8 hits per game. However, it's not like Salpointe Catholic struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 5.1 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Ironwood Ridge couldn't quite get it done against Salpointe Catholic in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 as they fell 6-1. Can Ironwood Ridge avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
