It's hard to turn regular season success into postseason wins, a fact Malad can now relate to. They fell just short of the Cole Valley Christian Chargers by a score of 8-7 on Friday. Malad's loss signaled the end of their 13-game winning streak.
Riglee Peterson was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. She struck out ten batters over seven innings while giving up four earned (and four unearned) runs off nine hits (and only one walk). Peterson has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in eight consecutive pitching appearances. Peterson was also big at the plate, scoring a run while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances.
In other batting news, Aubrey Shulz stepped up to lead a balanced group of hitters: she scored two runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. Another player making a difference was Hallie Horsley, who went 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs, and two RBI.
Even though they lost, Malad didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with ten strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Cole Valley Christian only tossed five.
Like Malad, Cole Valley Christian also got a great game from a two-way player: Karlie Barnum. On the mound, she tossed five innings while giving up four earned runs off seven hits. Barnum was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with two RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Lola Crosby, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Abbie English was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4.
Having lost for the first time this season, Malad fell to 25-1-1. As for Cole Valley Christian, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won 18 of their last 19 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 22-4-1 record this season.
Malad is on the road again on Friday to play Declo at 11:15 a.m. Malad's pitching crew has only allowed 2.1 runs per game this season, so Declo's hitters will have their work cut out for them. As for Cole Valley Christian, they will challenge Orofino at 11:15 a.m. on Friday. Cole Valley Christian will be looking to extend their current 14-game winning streak.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
