The Rocklin Thunder are taking a road trip to take on the Folsom Bulldogs at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Rocklin's pitching crew has only allowed 1.8 runs per game this season, so Folsom's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Rocklin faced another nationally ranked opponent in their previous game: Del Oro, who was ranked 30th at the time (Rocklin was ranked 22nd). Rocklin fell 6-2 to Del Oro on Wednesday. The game marked the Thunder's lowest-scoring contest so far this season.
Sammie Snell made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and went 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI. That home run marked the first that she launched this season.
Meanwhile, Folsom gave up the first runs on Wednesday, but they didn't let that get them down. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 5-3 victory over St. Francis. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Bulldogs have posted since May 9, 2024.
Raygan Mercado was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She tossed seven innings while giving up three earned runs off ten hits. Mercado was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Devyn Huber, who went 2-for-3 with one home run. Another player making a difference was Brooke Digiorno, who went 1-for-3 with one home run and two runs.
Folsom is on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-2-2 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.0 runs over those games. Rocklin's defeat ended a four-game streak of away wins and brought them to 8-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Rocklin hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 1.1 home runs per game. However, it's not like Folsom struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.7 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Rocklin couldn't quite finish off Folsom in their previous matchup back in April of 2024 and fell 5-3. Can Rocklin avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
