The Brookside Cardinals will face off against the Buckeye Bucks at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Brookside will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak.
Brookside took a six-run defeat the last time they faced off against Wellington, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Cardinals sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-4 victory over the Dukes on Friday.
Markie-Ann Aliff
| 05/16/25 vs Wellington | 10 |
| 05/15/25 @ Woodridge | 6 |
| 05/13/25 @ Lorain | 9 |
Markie-Ann Aliff was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She struck out ten batters over seven innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs.
Aliff wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Khloe Racz, who went 1-for-3 with one triple, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Buckeye never let their opponents score on Monday. They put the hurt on Bay with a sharp 10-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Bucks, who have now won 17 matches by nine runs or more so far this season.
Bay's batters probably weren't too happy with Lilly Young, who pitched a no hitter and racked up 15 Ks (she gave up a single walk).
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Faith Shaw, who fired off two home runs and five RBI while going 2-for-4. Those two home runs gave her a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Ava Piovarchy, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two doubles.
Buckeye was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .414. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Bay only posted a batting average of .000.
Buckeye is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 19-5-1 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.3 runs on average over those games. As for Brookside, their record is now 11-15.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Brookside has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 6.5 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Buckeye struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 6.3 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Brookside came up short against Buckeye in their previous meeting back in April of 2019, falling 13-8. Can the Cardinals avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
