Castilleja is 0-10 against Mercy since May of 2017 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Castilleja Gators will head out on the road to face off against the Mercy Bears at 4:00 p.m. Castilleja is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.8 runs per game this season.
Castilleja is is headed into Thursday's matchup looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their sixth straight game on Monday. They fell just short of Terra Nova by a score of 7-6.
Emma Foster and Katherine Cheng stepped up to the plate in a big way. Foster scored a run and stole two bases while going 3-for-4, while Cheng scored two runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Mercy fought the good fight in their extra-innings game against Notre Dame on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Regents by a score of 5-3. Mercy just can't catch a break and has now endured three defeats in a row.
J Villavicencio spent all nine innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered five earned runs on 14 hits and racked up ten Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't pitched less than five innings every time she's pitched this season.
At the plate, G Ortega was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-4 with a home run and three RBI.
Castilleja's record now sits at 5-7. As for Mercy, their record is now 7-9-1.
Thursday's match will be a test for both team's pitchers. Castilleja hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .356. However, it's not like Mercy struggles in that department as they've averaged .353. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Castilleja suffered a grim 20-0 defeat to Mercy in their previous matchup back in April. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Villavicencio, who kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. Now that Castilleja knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
