The South Walton Seahawks will face off against the North Bay Haven Academy Buccaneers at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday. The timing isn't great for South Walton: they have been struggling with five straight losses at home, while North Bay Haven Academy has snatched up seven consecutive wins on the road.
Last Tuesday, South Walton came up short against Fort Walton Beach and fell 6-1.
South Walton saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Zoey Kreinus, who went 1-for-3 with one RBI.
Meanwhile, North Bay Haven Academy made easy work of Crestview on Tuesday and carried off a 17-1 victory. The result was nothing new for the Buccaneers, who have now won 12 matchups by seven runs or more so far this season.
Addison Mallon made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over four innings pitched. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 12 consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring four runs while going 4-for-4. Those four runs gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, North Bay Haven Academy let Bailee Gladden and Kaylee Goodpaster run wild. Gladden went 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI, while Goodpaster went 3-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs. That's the most RBI Gladden has posted since back in February. Another player making a difference was Ally Brady, who scored three runs while going 3-for-4.
North Bay Haven Academy was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .676. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .333 or higher in ten consecutive games.
North Bay Haven Academy is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 16-3 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for South Walton, their defeat dropped their record down to 7-10.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. South Walton hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like North Bay Haven Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.9 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
South Walton suffered a grim 15-0 defeat to North Bay Haven Academy when the teams last played back in February. Will the Seahawks have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
