The Elmwood Park Tigers will challenge the Payton College Prep Grizzlies at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Elmwood Park has now lost seven straight, leaving the team hunting for their first win since the 10th.
Bartlett hit Elmwood Park with a ten-run fourth inning on Thursday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Tigers lost 12-4 to the Hawks.
Elmwood Park saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Abigail Jarosz, who went 1-for-4 with one home run and two RBI. That home run was Jarosz's first of the season. Tessa LaRocco was another, going 1-for-2 with one run and one double.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Payton College Prep). They were the clear victors by a 19-1 margin over Juarez on Thursday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Grizzlies considering their two-run performance the game before.
Athena Corrales spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on two hits.
On the hitting side, Sophie Spreen was a standout: she went a perfect 2-for-2 with three stolen bases, three runs, and four RBI. That's the most hits she has posted since back in May of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Saya Tanabe, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with three stolen bases, three runs, and one RBI.
Payton College Prep always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .812. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Payton College Prep's win bumped their record up to 5-10. As for Elmwood Park, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-9.
Everything went Elmwood Park's way against Payton College Prep when the teams last played back in May of 2024, as Elmwood Park made off with a 9-1 victory. Do the Tigers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Grizzlies turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.