The Prout Crusaders are taking a road trip to square off against the Pilgrim Patriots at 5:00 p.m. on Friday.
Prout is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Rhode Island's top teams: Chariho, who was ranked third at the time (Prout was ranked eighth). The Crusaders lost 12-0 to the Chargers on Friday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Crusaders have suffered against the Chargers since April 8, 2023.
Meanwhile, Pilgrim had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 15 runs) and they went ahead and made it three on Thursday. Everything went their way against the Oakers as they made off with a 10-0 victory. The Patriots might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five matchups by eight runs or more this season.
Not much got past Gretchen Dombeck, who gave up just two hits to keep Coventry off the board. Dombeck has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Skylar Hawes and Madison Tuirok did most of the damage at the plate: Hawes went 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI, while Tuirok went 1-for-3 with three stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. That's the most stolen bases Tuirok has posted since back in May of 2024. Marin Prest was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI.
Pilgrim pushed their record up to 12-1 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.7 runs on average over those games. As for Prout, their defeat ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 7-5.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Prout has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Pilgrim struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.1 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Prout came up short against Pilgrim when the teams last played back in May of 2024, falling 4-1. Can the Crusaders avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
