The Cranston East Thunderbolts will face off against the Shea Raiders at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday. Cranston East is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
Cranston East is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Wednesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Tiverton a 9-0 shutout. Considering Cranston East has won 12 contests by more than five runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.
Isabella Sousa made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 15 over seven innings pitched. Sousa has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than eight strikeouts in 12 consecutive pitching appearances. Sousa was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a home run, five RBI, and two runs.
In other batting news, Cranston East let Jaeda Viveiros and Nevaeh Fatorma loose on the outfield. Viveiros scored two runs while going 2-for-3, while Fatorma went 1-for-3 with two runs and a triple. Another player making a difference was Samaya Imondi, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Shea faced Tiverton in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Thursday. Shea had just enough and edged Tiverton out 10-8. Ten seems to be a good number for Shea as the team scooped up a win with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Like Cranston East, Shea also got a great game from a two-way player: Janayah Gordon. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over seven innings while giving up six earned (and two unearned) runs off six hits. Gordon was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with four RBI, a triple, and a run.
In other batting news, Shea let Aniya Rua and Alexandra Larios loose on the outfield. Rua scored two runs while going 3-for-4, while Larios scored two runs while going 2-for-5. The team also got some help courtesy of Clara Perez, who went 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Cranston East's victory was their 11th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 16-0. As for Shea, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 11-7.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Cranston East has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 11.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Shea struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.8. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Cranston East was able to grind out a solid victory over Shea when the teams last played last Tuesday, winning 5-1. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Gordon, who struck out 15 batters over seven innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off eight hits. Now that she's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Cranston East still be able to contain Gordon? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
