The North Newton Spartans will challenge the Pioneer Panthers at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as North Newton comes in on five and Pioneer on seven.
North Newton is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Monday. They came out on top against North White by a score of 4-0. Give the Spartans' pitching crew some credit: that's the team's third straight shutout.
The result came thanks to Sydney Rainford's shutout, as she gave up just a hit and racked up 16 Ks. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 17 consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Caylee Oxley, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, one triple, and two RBI. That's the most stolen bases she has posted over her last ten games.
Meanwhile, Pioneer made easy work of DeMotte Christian on Monday and carried off a 14-1 win. Considering the Panthers have won 11 contests by more than six runs this season, Monday's blowout was nothing new.
Lois Layer was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out seven over five innings pitched. Layer was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with two runs.
In other batting news, Addison Kennell and Ava Beasy did most of the damage at the plate: Kennell went 2-for-3 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs, while Beasy went a perfect 3-for-3 with three runs, one triple, and two RBI. That triple was Beasy's first of the season. Another player making a difference was Madyson Shaffer, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases and one RBI.
Pioneer was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .483. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as DeMotte Christian only posted a batting average of .059.
North Newton's record is now 18-3-1. As for Pioneer, their record now sits at 21-10.
North Newton skirted past Pioneer 1-0 in their previous meeting back in May of 2022. Will the Spartans repeat their success, or do the Panthers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
