The Whitney Wildcats will square off against the Granite Bay Grizzlies at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Whitney is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Wednesday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Cosumnes Oaks a 15-0 shutout. Considering the Wildcats have won nine contests by more than five runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.
Taylor Cordell looked comfortable as she tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 11 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Tylie Kitchen was incredible, going a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. That's the most hits she has posted since back in March. Brooklyn Steele was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs, two doubles, and two RBI.
Whitney always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .656. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, after low-scoring totals in their previous three matchup, Granite Bay brought some dynamite into their most recent game. They were the clear victors by a 10-0 margin over Kimball on Wednesday. The victory was a breath of fresh air for the Grizzlies as it put an end to their four-game losing streak.
Granite Bay also got a great performance from Paetynn Snobar as she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 12 over five innings pitched.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Sami McKown, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with four RBI and two doubles. Another player making a difference was Leilani Terrazas, who went 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI.
Whitney is on a roll lately: they've won ten of their last 13 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 20-9 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.2 runs over those games. As for Granite Bay, their victory bumped their record up to 9-12-1.
Granite Bay's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Whitney hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .321. It's a different story for Granite Bay, though, as they've only averaged .249. Will they be able to contain Whitney's hitters?
Whitney took their win against Granite Bay in their previous meeting two weeks ago by a conclusive 7-1 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Wildcats since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
