The Ballantyne Ridge Wolves will take on the East Mecklenburg Eagles at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Ballantyne Ridge is coming into the contest hot, having won their last three games.
Ballantyne Ridge's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They blew past Berry 11-0. Considering the Wolves have won six games by more than eight runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Emma Priest made a splash no matter where she played. She didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over five innings pitched. Those seven strikeouts gave her a new career-high. She was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs while going 3-for-4.
Savanna Brown
| 04/08/25 @ Berry | 4 |
| 04/03/25 @ Olympic | 3 |
| 03/13/25 vs Berry | 3 |
| 04/02/25 @ Cox Mill | 2 |
| 03/24/25 @ North Mecklenburg | 2 |
In other batting news, Savanna Brown was incredible, going 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and one triple. Those four RBI gave her a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Taylynn Holnagel, who scored three runs while going 3-for-4.
Ballantyne Ridge kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 15 hits. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their hit total in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, East Mecklenburg unfortunately witnessed the end of their five-game winning streak on Monday. They fell 8-3 to Sun Valley.
Like Ballantyne Ridge, East Mecklenburg also got a great game from a two-way player: Geneva Garvais. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out ten batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and seven unearned) runs off five hits. Garvais has been consistent for a while: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in 11 consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in two of her three plate appearances.
Ballantyne Ridge's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 8-11. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.0 runs over those games. As for East Mecklenburg, their defeat dropped their record down to 10-9.
Wednesday's match might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Ballantyne Ridge has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .459. However, it's not like East Mecklenburg struggles in that department as they've averaged .496. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Ballantyne Ridge came out on top in a nail-biter against East Mecklenburg in their previous matchup two weeks ago, sneaking past 13-12. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Wolves since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
