The Hilltop Cadets will take on the Montpelier Locomotives at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Montpelier will square off against a team with plenty of momentum: Hilltop extended their winning streak to three on Tuesday. The Cadets blew past Edon 14-1.
Giada Rising made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run over five innings pitched. She has been consistent : she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with three RBI.
Kelsy Connolly
| 04/15/25 @ Edon | 5 |
| 03/22/25 @ Taylor | 4 |
| 04/22/24 vs Hicksville | 3 |
| 04/19/24 @ Bryan | 3 |
| 04/16/24 @ Holgate | 3 |
In other batting news, Kelsy Connolly was incredible, going a perfect 5-for-5 with one home run, three runs, and three doubles. Those five hits gave her a new career-high. Kenley Routt was another key player, scoring four runs while going 4-for-5.
Hilltop always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .585. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Montpelier). They were the clear victors by a 34-1 margin over Stryker on Tuesday. With that victory, the Locomotives brought their scoring average up to 7.6 runs per game.
Like Hilltop, Montpelier also got a great game from a two-way player: Madelyn Hopper. She struck out eight batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). Hopper was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with five RBI, one run, and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kelsie Bumb, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with one home run, six RBI, and four runs. That home run was her first of the season. Another player making a difference was Maggie Jacob, who got on base in four of her six plate appearances with five runs, three RBI, and one triple.
Hilltop's win was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-1. Those road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.1 runs on average over those games. As for Montpelier, their win ended a four-game drought on the road and puts them at 5-5.
Hilltop couldn't quite finish off Montpelier in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 and fell 6-4. Can the Cadets avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
