Pioneer Valley has won five straight games at home, while Templeton has won five straight on the road, but those streaks won't matter much on Thursday. The Panthers will welcome the Eagles at 4:30 p.m. Pioneer Valley's pitching crew has only allowed 1.2 runs per game this season, so Templeton's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Pioneer Valley will bounce into Thursday's game after beating Atascadero, who they had gone 1-8 against in their nine prior meetings. The Panthers came out on top against the Greyhounds by a score of 6-1 on Tuesday. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last four times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Ciena Acosta spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on five hits and racked up eight Ks.
On the hitting side, Natalia Rocha was excellent, scoring two runs while going 3-for-3. That's the most hits she has posted since back in March of 2024. Aniana Torres also deserves some recognition as she brought in her first RBI of the season.
Pioneer Valley hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least five strikeouts batters in six consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Templeton never let their opponents score on Thursday. They blew past Orcutt Academy 9-0.
Not much got past Tegan Jay, who gave up just five hits and racked up eight Ks to keep Orcutt Academy off the board. Jay has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Emma Kriling, who went 2-for-3 with three runs, one triple, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Whitney Moore, who went 1-for-3 with four RBI and one double.
Pioneer Valley is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last eight matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 10-5 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.4 runs over those games. As for Templeton, they now have a winning record of 6-5.
