The Frontier Cougars are taking a road trip to square off against the Shadyside Tigers at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Frontier is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
Frontier proved they can win big on Friday (they won by 14) and on Wednesday they proved they can win the close ones too. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Fort Frye a 1-0 shutout.
Not much got past Kaycee Berentz, who gave up just four hits and racked up 17 Ks to keep Fort Frye off the board. Berentz has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in 11 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Grace Arnold was excellent, going 1-for-4 with one home run.
Meanwhile, Shadyside had just enough and edged out Shenandoah 5-4 on Thursday. That's two games straight that the Tigers have won by just one run.
Ariana Saxton spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and two unearned) runs on six hits and racked up 15 Ks. Those 15 strikeouts set a new season-high mark for her.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Josey Greenwood, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI.
Frontier pushed their record up to 12-0 with the win, which was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.4 runs over those games. As for Shadyside, they are on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 7-7 record this season.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Frontier has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.8 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Shadyside struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.4 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Frontier skirted past Shadyside 1-0 when the teams last played last Thursday. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Cougars since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
