The Atholton Raiders will venture away from home to face off against the Wilde Lake Wildecats at 4:15 p.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, these teams will really light up the scoreboard.
Atholton will bounce into Friday's contest after beating Reservoir, who they had gone 0-9 against in their nine prior meetings. The Raiders put the hurt on the Gators with a sharp 22-4 win on Monday. Considering the Raiders have won seven matchups by more than five runs this season, Monday's blowout was nothing new.
Ellie Cathirell made a big impact no matter where she played. She tossed five innings while giving up just one earned (and three unearned) runs off five hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one walk in seven consecutive appearances. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going 4-for-5 with three runs, one triple, and two RBI. That's the most hits she has posted since back in March.
In other batting news, Atholton got a massive performance out of Sophie Morton, who got on base in all five of her plate appearances with one home run and four RBI. That home run was Morton's first of the season. Reagan Law was another key player, going 2-for-4 with three runs, three RBI, and one triple.
Atholton was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .458. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .357 or higher in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Wilde Lake). They were the clear victors by a 20-2 margin over Oakland Mills on Tuesday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Wildecats.
Camille Coleman made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 13 over five innings pitched. Coleman was also big at the plate, getting on base in all five of her plate appearances with five runs, three RBI, and one stolen base.
In other batting news, Olivia Bixler was a standout: she went 2-for-4 with four runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Betsy Alt, who got on base in four of her five plate appearances with five RBI, two runs, and one double.
Atholton's record now sits at 10-5. As for Wilde Lake, they picked up their first road victory, bumping their record up to 4-12.
Wilde Lake's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Atholton has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.9 hits per game. It's a different story for Wilde Lake, though, as they've been averaging 9.9 hits. Given Atholton's sizable advantage in that area, the Wildecats will need to find a way to close that gap.
Atholton skirted past Wilde Lake 5-3 in their previous matchup back in March. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Raiders since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
