The East Providence Townies will take on the St. Raphael Academy Saints at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. East Providence is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.3 runs per game this season.
East Providence is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Rhode Island's top teams: Cranston West, who was ranked fifth at the time (East Providence was ranked 11th). The Townies lost 11-5 to the Falcons on Wednesday. The home team had taken home the W every time these teams have met since May 11, 2021, but that streak is no more.
East Providence got a good showing from Cassie Dulude, who pitched four innings while giving up just one earned (and four unearned) runs off five hits.
On the hitting side, Nethania Figueroa was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-3 with one home run and three RBI.
Meanwhile, St. Raphael Academy fought the good fight in their extra-innings game against West Warwick on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Wizards by a score of 3-2. The contest marked the Saints' lowest-scoring matchup so far this season.
Isabella Sousa was huge no matter where she played even without the win. On the mound, she struck out 14 batters over seven innings while giving up three earned runs off five hits (and only one walk). She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in five consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-4 with one home run and two RBI.
In other batting news, Jaliyah De Los Santos made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-4 with one triple, one run, and one double. That double was her first of the season.
East Providence's loss was their third straight at home, which dropped their record down to 7-8. As for St. Raphael Academy, the defeat snapped their winning streak at five games and leaves them with a 9-2 record.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. East Providence hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.5 home runs per game. However, it's not like St. Raphael Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.6 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
East Providence couldn't quite get it done against St. Raphael Academy in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 as they fell 6-2. Can the Townies avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
