The Girls Prep Bruisers will venture away from home to challenge the Cleveland Blue Raiders at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Girls Prep will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.
Girls Prep's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They came out on top against Knoxville Catholic by a score of 4-0. While the Bruisers didn't have the best season last year (they finished 9-12), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
The result came thanks to Addison Smith's shutout, as she gave up just a hit. Furthermore, she didn't allow a single earned run, the first time she has blanked an opponent over her last six matchups.
On the hitting side, Jayla Gladden was excellent, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was Sky Marshall, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Cleveland suffered their closest defeat since April 23, 2024 on Wednesday. They fell just short of Chattanooga Christian by a score of 9-7.
Lilly Mason was cooking despite her team's loss, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with one triple, one run, and one RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Landri Nelson, who scored two runs while going 3-for-4.
Girls Prep pushed their record up to 10-3 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Cleveland, their loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 7-7.
Thursday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Girls Prep hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .409. However, it's not like Cleveland struggles in that department as they've averaged .323. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Girls Prep came up short against Cleveland in their previous meeting back in March of 2024, falling 8-5. Can Girls Prep avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.