Mid Valley is 9-1 against Old Forge since April of 2021 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The Spartans will square off against the Blue Devils at 7:30 p.m. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Mid Valley sitting on 12 straight wins and Old Forge on six.
Mid Valley is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They never let Honesdale get on the board and left with a 19-0 victory on Tuesday. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest win of the season.
Ava Hazelton
| 04/21/26 @ Honesdale | 7 |
| 04/17/26 vs Riverside | 6 |
| 04/13/26 @ Holy Cross | 12 |
| 04/11/26 vs West Scranton | 10 |
| 04/10/26 vs Lakeland | 11 |
| + 8 more games |
Ava Hazelton was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out seven over four innings pitched. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts any time she's pitched this season. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with three RBI, one run, and one double. Those three hits gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, Angela Laskowski was incredible, getting on base in four of her five plate appearances with one home run, six RBI, and two runs. Those six RBI gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Parker Bennett, who went 3-for-4 with three RBI, two doubles, and one run.
Mid Valley always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .675. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Old Forge won against Hanover Area on Saturday with 16 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. The Blue Devils were the clear victors by a 16-9 margin over Riverside. Considering the Blue Devils have won six contests by more than six runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Kamryn Notari spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered four earned (and five unearned) runs on 12 hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Joselyn DeStefano, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Julia Marianelli also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
Mid Valley's record is now 12-1. As for Old Forge, their record now sits at 7-3.
Old Forge's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Mid Valley has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.3 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Old Forge, though, as they've been averaging an even more impressive 4 strikeouts. Will Mid Valley keep running through batters, or will the Blue Devils buck the trend?
Mid Valley was able to grind out a solid victory over Old Forge in their previous meeting on April 2nd, winning 9-5. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Spartans since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
