The Onaga Buffaloes will square off against the Blue Valley Rams at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Onaga has seven straight victories, Blue Valley has three straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
On Monday, Onaga got the win against Doniphan West by a conclusive 14-1. The result was nothing new for the Buffaloes, who have now won 11 games by eight runs or more so far this season.
Willow Hochstedler made a splash while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits (and only one walk). She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Abbie Ringel, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. What's more, she posted two doubles, the most she's had since back in March. Another player making a difference was Annie Force, who went 2-for-4 with three RBI, two runs, and one double.
Onaga kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 17 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in seven consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Thursday just wasn't the day for Blue Valley's offense. They came up short against Onaga on April 3rd, falling 15-0.
Onaga pushed their record up to 13-3 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.8 runs on average over those games. As for Blue Valley, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-3.
Blue Valley's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Onaga has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 11.3 hits per game. It's a different story for Blue Valley, though, as they've been averaging 10.8 hits. Given Onaga's sizable advantage in that area, the Rams will need to find a way to close that gap.
Onaga took their win against Blue Valley in their previous matchup on April 3rd by a conclusive 15-0 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Buffaloes since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
