Westfall will face off against Lynchburg-Clay at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Neither of those teams managed to put together many runs in their previous contests, so the offenses might be a little more motivated than usual.
Westfall is probably headed into the matchup with a chip on their shoulder considering Piketon just ended the team's three-game winning streak on Friday. They fell just short of the Redstreaks by a score of 2-1.
Jill Butcher made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and got on base in three of her four plate appearances with one stolen base and one RBI. That stolen base was her first of the season. The team also got some help courtesy of Kenzie Cook, who scored a run while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, it may have taken nine innings to finish the job, but Lynchburg-Clay ultimately got the result they hoped for on Friday. They had just enough and edged out Fayetteville-Perry 2-1. While the Mustangs didn't have the best season last year (they finished 10-13), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
Aubrey Roberts spent all nine innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered a run (which was unearned) on eight hits and racked up seven Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Lynchburg-Clay's win was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Reese Ruble, who went 2-for-3 with one RBI. Caitlyn Collins was another, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 1-for-4.
Westfall's defeat was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 2-1 and their overall record down to 3-4. As for Lynchburg-Clay, their victory bumped their record up to 8-2.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Westfall has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Lynchburg-Clay struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 10.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Westfall beat Lynchburg-Clay 6-1 in their previous meeting back in May of 2023. Will Westfall repeat their success, or does Lynchburg-Clay has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
