The Parrish Community Bulls will take on the Plant Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Parrish Community is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. They won by a run and slipped past Lakewood Ranch 2-1. The win continues a trend for the Bulls in their matchups with the Mustangs: they've now won six in a row.
Emmaline Van Beck spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on six hits.
On the hitting side, Parrish Community's victory was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jersie Rohde, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base and one double.
Parrish Community hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their strikeout total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Plant waltzed into their matchup on Thursday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past the Sharks 5-3. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Panthers have posted since March 31st.
Plant also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Gigi Cozzens gave up three earned runs on three hits and racked up eight Ks. Cozzens has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than eight strikeouts in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Alexis Medina, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI, one triple, and one run. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March. Shelise Johnson was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with one run and one double.
Plant's win bumped their record up to 14-9. As for Parrish Community, their victory bumped their record up to 23-3.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Parrish Community hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.5 home runs per game. However, it's not like Plant struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.5 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Parrish Community came out on top in a nail-biter against Plant when the teams last played back in March of 2023, sneaking past 5-3. Do the Bulls have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Panthers turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
