The South Kingstown Rebels will venture away from home to challenge the St. Raphael Academy Saints at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. South Kingstown has given up an average of 8.5 runs per game this season, but Tuesday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
South Kingstown barely beat Narragansett the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Rebels were the clear victors by a 19-11 margin over the Mariners on Monday. Considering the Rebels have won three games by more than seven runs this season, Monday's blowout was nothing new.
South Kingstown let Tessa O'Sullivan and Grace Palmieri run wild. O'Sullivan got on base in all six of her plate appearances with four runs, two stolen bases, and one triple, while Palmieri went 4-for-5 with four runs, four RBI, and one stolen base. That triple marked the first that O'Sullivan has hit this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Abigail O'Rourke, who got on base in four of her six plate appearances with three RBI, one run, and one double.
South Kingstown always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .667. They are 4-1 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, St. Raphael Academy faced North Kingstown in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Monday. The Saints never let the Skippers get on the board and left with a 9-0 victory. While the Saints didn't have the best season last year (they finished 5-14), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
Isabella Sousa made a big impact no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out 20 over seven innings pitched. Sousa was also solid in the batter's box, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Sophie Roman, who went 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBI.
St. Raphael Academy pushed their record up to 5-1 with the win, which was their third straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.7 runs on average over those games. As for South Kingstown, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 4-6.
Both South Kingstown and St. Raphael Academy just can't seem to miss. The Rebels have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 11.5 hits per game. However, it's not like St. Raphael Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 3 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
South Kingstown suffered a grim 12-4 defeat to St. Raphael Academy when the teams last played back in May of 2022. Can the Rebels avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
