The Pioneer Valley Panthers will head out on the road to take on the Tulare Western Mustangs at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be battling to keep a five-game winning streak alive.
It was a proper cat-fight when Pioneer Valley duked it out with Paso Robles on Thursday. Pioneer Valley came out on top against Paso Robles by a score of 8-3.
Ciena Acosta
| 03/27/25 @ Paso Robles | 8 |
| 03/22/25 vs Chavez | 11 |
| 03/21/25 vs Eastside | 9 |
| 03/18/25 @ Templeton | 8 |
| 03/15/25 @ Redwood | 9 |
| + 4 more games |
Ciena Acosta spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned runs on seven hits and racked up eight Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts any time she's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Kianna Real, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-4. Mila Dolores also deserves some recognition as she snagged her first stolen base of the season.
Meanwhile, Tulare Western made easy work of Washington Union on Tuesday and carried off a 13-4 win. The result was nothing new for the Mustangs, who have now won four matches by six runs or more so far this season.
Ky Taylor tossed a big game, tossing 4.2 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off four hits.
At the plate, Alivea Salcedo was a standout: she scored four runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of her five plate appearances. That's the most runs she has posted since back in May of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Janmarie Topalian, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4.
Tulare Western was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .444. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .304 or higher in five consecutive games.
Tulare Western pushed their record up to 7-2-1 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Pioneer Valley, their record is now 8-4.
Tulare Western's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Pioneer Valley has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.3 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Tulare Western, though, as they've been averaging only 2.5 strikeouts. Will Pioneer Valley keep running through batters, or will Tulare Western buck the trend? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
