The Cape Fear Colts will square off against the Purnell Swett Rams at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Purnell Swett will be up against a hot Cape Fear squad: the team just extended their winning streak to four. Cape Fear's pitchers stepped up to hand North Johnston a 13-0 shutout on Thursday. Fans of the Colts have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 6+ runs.
Karalina Tomasic and McKinley Kolasa were a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Tomasic tossed 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Kolasa tossed 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. That's the fewest hits Tomasic has allowed since back in April of 2024. At the plate, Tomasic scored a run while getting on base in all three of her plate appearances, while Kolasa scored two runs while going 2-for-4.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Amari Adams, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 4-for-4. Addy Davis was another key player, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Cape Fear kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least 11 hits every time they've taken the field this season.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last match, Purnell Swett made sure to put some runs up on the board against Pinecrest on Thursday. Purnell Swett put the hurt on Pinecrest with a sharp 19-9 win. The victory was some much needed relief for the Rams as it spelled an end to their three-game losing streak.
Purnell Swett got a massive performance out of Kara Hunt, who fired off two triples, three runs, and two doubles while going 4-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Jayla Graham, who scored four runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances.
Cape Fear pushed their record up to 4-0 with the win, which was their tenth straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Purnell Swett, their victory bumped their record up to 2-3.
Purnell Swett's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Cape Fear has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 15.5 hits per game. It's a different story for Purnell Swett, though, as they've been averaging 11.4 hits. Given Cape Fear's sizable advantage in that area, Purnell Swett will need to find a way to close that gap.
Cape Fear took their win against Purnell Swett in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 15-0. Will Cape Fear repeat their success, or does Purnell Swett have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
