With a playoff game on the line, Spruce Creek rose to the challenge on Thursday. They put the hurt on the Mandarin Mustangs with a sharp 7-1 win. Considering Spruce Creek has won 13 matches by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Julie Kelley was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out 14 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits (and not a single walk). Kelley has been consistent recently: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in 14 consecutive pitching appearances. Kelley was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with a home run, two runs, and a double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Alexis Minaberry, who fired off two home runs and three runs while going 3-for-3. Adalyn Morford was another key contributor, going 3-for-3 with two RBI.
On Mandarin's side, they got a good showing from Chloe Jenkins, who tossed three innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit.
At the plate, Mandarin saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Olivia Anderson, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 1-for-3.
The victory was the 11th in a row for Spruce Creek, bringing their record for this year to 20-3. As for Mandarin, their loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 15-9.
Spruce Creek will take on Seminole at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The pair have allowed few runs on average, (Seminole: 3, Spruce Creek: 1.7) so any runs scored will be well earned. Mandarin does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
