After some red-hot attacks at the plate in their last three matchups, North Mecklenburg finally came back down to earth on Wednesday. They wound up on the wrong side of a tough 18-2 walloping at the hands of the Mallard Creek Mavericks. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for North Mecklenburg in their matchups with Mallard Creek: they've now lost nine in a row.
Jordan Grice put in work while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over five innings pitched. Grice has been consistent recently: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in three consecutive pitching appearances. Grice was even better at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a home run, two runs, and a triple.
In other batting news, Quinn Murphy made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Arianna Gongora, who scored a run and stole four bases while going 2-for-4.
Even though they lost, North Mecklenburg was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .444. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Mallard Creek only posted a batting average of .263.
Like North Mecklenburg, Mallard Creek also got a great game from a two-way player: Alondra Rivera-Maldonado. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and only one hit while striking out eight over five innings pitched. Rivera-Maldonado was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with a home run, five RBI, and two runs.
In other batting news, Mena Kuzara was a standout: she scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Makaila Murray was another key contributor, scoring three runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all five of her plate appearances.
North Mecklenburg's defeat dropped their record down to 9-6. As for Mallard Creek, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight matches, which provided a nice bump to their 11-5 record this season.
North Mecklenburg will play host again on Thursday to welcome West Charlotte, where first pitch is scheduled at 5:30 p.m. As for Mallard Creek, they will head out on the road to face off against Chambers at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Mallard Creek is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 14 runs per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
