The Garland Owls will square off against the Longview Lobos at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday. Garland is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 10.5 runs per game this season.
Longview will be up against a hot Garland squad: the team just extended their winning streak to three. The Owls put the hurt on North Garland with a sharp 12-1 win on Friday. The result was nothing new for the Owls, who have now won 18 games by six runs or more so far this season.
Melody Alarcon was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Alarcon was even better at the plate, going 2-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and two doubles. That's the most doubles she has posted since back in February.
In other batting news, Natalie Arent and Payton Dean did most of the damage at the plate: Arent went 2-for-3 with three runs, one double, and one RBI, while Dean went 3-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. Samantha Blalock was another key player, going 1-for-3 with three RBI.
Garland hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least four batters in seven consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Longview had just enough and edged out Royse City 5-3 on Friday.
Longview's victory bumped their record up to 18-13. As for Garland, their win bumped their record up to 24-6.
Garland came out on top in a nail-biter against Longview in their previous meeting back in February of 2017, sneaking past 6-5. Will the Owls repeat their success, or do the Lobos have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.