Mills is on a ten-game streak of home wins, while Sequoia is on a five-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Vikings will host the Ravens at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
The scorekeeper got an easy start on Friday as neither Mills nor Notre Dame made it on the board until the seventh inning. The Vikings came out on top in a nail-biter against the Tigers, sneaking past 3-2. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Vikings have posted since February 28th.
Kalia Woo spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned runs on three hits. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 15 consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Mills' win was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Lucy Esquivel, who went 2-for-3 with two doubles and one run. Audrey Jang was another, going 1-for-3 with one triple and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Sequoia gave up the first runs on Friday, but they didn't let that get them down. They had just enough and edged out Half Moon Bay 7-5. The victory continues a trend for the Ravens in their matchups with the Cougars: they've now won four in a row.
Jada Crockett was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out 11 batters over seven innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off seven hits. Crockett was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of her five plate appearances with one home run, two runs, and one stolen base. That home run marked the first that she has launched this season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Gottshall Annika (Annie), who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Mehta Nisha, who went 1-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.
Sequoia kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Half Moon Bay only managed seven hits.
Mills is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten games. That's provided a nice bump to their 17-3-1 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.1 runs on average over those games. As for Sequoia, their victory bumped their record up to 10-7.
Wednesday's matchup will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Mills hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .371. However, it's not like Sequoia struggles in that department as they've averaged .336. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Mills took their win against Sequoia in their previous meeting back in March by a conclusive 13-3 score. Will the Vikings repeat their success, or do the Ravens have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
