The Northfield Nighthawks will square off against the Thomas Jefferson Spartans at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Northfield is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 10.7 runs per game this season.
Northfield fought the good fight in their extra-innings game against Denver North on Wednesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Vikings by a score of 5-4. The Nighthawks have struggled against the Vikings recently, as the game was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Brielle Montoya was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. She struck out eight batters over 7.2 innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off eight hits. Montoya was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with one triple and one RBI. That triple was her first of the season.
Montoya wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Audrina Srichabok, who went 1-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. That double marked the first that Srichabok has hit this season. Another was Maci Molinary, who went 3-for-4 with one stolen base and one run.
Meanwhile, Thomas Jefferson lost 16-3 to Denver East on Thursday. That's two games in a row now that the Spartans have lost by exactly 13 runs.
Marnee Berry was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-2 with one home run and two RBI. Sophie Hockett was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs.
Thomas Jefferson's defeat dropped their record down to 0-12. As for Northfield, their loss was their first in the league, dropping their league record down to 6-1 and their overall record down to 10-5.
Thomas Jefferson's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Thursday. Northfield has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.7 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Thomas Jefferson, though, as they've been averaging only 2.3 strikeouts. Will Northfield keep running through batters, or will the Spartans buck the trend?
Everything went Northfield's way against Thomas Jefferson when the teams last played on September 2nd, as Northfield made off with a 20-3 victory. Do the Nighthawks have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Spartans turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
