It's hard to turn regular season success into postseason wins, a fact Pioneer can now relate to. They fell just short of the Rochester Zebras by a score of 7-6 on Thursday. Pioneer was given a dose of their own medicine in this game as Rochester apparently hadn't forgotten their loss the last time these teams played back in April.
Lois Layer was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. On the mound, she struck out ten batters over eight innings while giving up just two earned (and five unearned) runs off 11 hits (and only one walk). Layer has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in ten consecutive pitching appearances. Layer was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and a double.
In other batting news, Casey Webb was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. Adeline Cripe was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 3-for-4.
Even though they lost, Pioneer didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with ten strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Rochester only tossed six.
On Rochester's side, Bria Rensberger spent all nine innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered four earned (and two unearned) runs on nine hits and racked up six Ks.
On the hitting side, Aubrey Wilson was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was Brailyn Hunter, who scored two runs while going 2-for-5.
Pioneer's defeat dropped their record down to 19-9. As for Rochester, the win (which was their 11th in a row) raised their record to 16-9.
Pioneer does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Rochester, they are on the road again on Tuesday to play Delphi Community at 6:00 p.m. The pair have allowed few runs on average, (Delphi Community: 3.5, Rochester: 3.8) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
