The Western Branch Bruins will head out on the road to challenge the York Falcons at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Western Branch is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 10.8 runs per game this season.
Western Branch is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Virginia's top teams: Hickory, who was ranked ninth at the time (Western Branch was ranked 20th). The Bruins walked away with a 9-6 win over the Hawks on Thursday. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last five times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Haylee Bandura spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered five earned (and one unearned) runs on ten hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances.
Ashley Matthews
| 05/08/25 vs Hickory | 2 |
| 04/03/25 @ Lakeland | 1 |
| 03/27/25 @ Deep Creek | 1 |
| 03/24/25 vs Bayside | 1 |
| 03/20/25 vs Nansemond River | 1 |
At the plate, Ashley Matthews and Lilly Creef did most of the damage at the plate: Matthews went 3-for-4 with three runs, two doubles, and one stolen base, while Creef went 2-for-3 with one home run and four RBI. Those two doubles gave Matthews a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Maddie Lemasters, who went 2-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
Meanwhile, after low-scoring totals in their previous three match, York brought some dynamite into their most recent contest. They never let Lafayette get on the board and left with a 19-0 victory on Friday. The result was nothing new for the Falcons, who have now won seven games by eight runs or more so far this season.
Bri Petrolia was a major factor no matter where she played. She pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Petrolia was even better at the plate, going a perfect 4-for-4 with four runs, three RBI, and one stolen base.
In other batting news, York got a massive performance out of Sarah Witt, who got on base in all five of her plate appearances with four runs, two doubles, and one stolen base. The team also got some help courtesy of Leah Hunter, who got on base in all five of her plate appearances with four RBI, two runs, and one double.
York was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .692. They are 7-1 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Western Branch has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-3 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.5 runs over those games. As for York, they moved to 8-7 with that victory, which also ended their three-game losing streak.
York's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Monday. Western Branch has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for York, though, as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.1 strikeouts. Will Western Branch keep running through batters, or will the Falcons buck the trend? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
