The Emerson Mavericks will take on the Independence Knights at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are strolling into their matchups after big wins in their previous games.
Independence will be up against a hot Emerson squad: the team just extended their winning streak to five. The Mavericks put the hurt on Frisco with a sharp 12-1 victory on Tuesday. Considering the Mavericks have won eight games by more than eight runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Emerson got a massive performance out of Ellie Thurman, who went 3-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one double. The team also got some help courtesy of Gianna Lipsky, who went 2-for-4 with five RBI, one run, and one double.
Emerson was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .536. The last time their batting average was this high was back in February of 2024.
Meanwhile, while Independence put up plenty of runs on Tuesday, the same can't be said for Heritage. The Knights were the clear victors by a 15-0 margin over the Coyotes. The game snapped a strange streak: the last four times these teams have met, it?s been the away team that?s taken home the W.
Avery Hillier made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits. Hillier was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-3. Those two hits gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, Independence let Katy TOWNE and Stormy DANIEL run wild. TOWNE scored three runs while going 2-for-2, while DANIEL scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. TOWNE continues to improve, besting her previous point total in each of the last three games she's played. Ashley HUBERT was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
Emerson's win bumped their record up to 13-6. As for Independence, their victory ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 6-9.
Independence's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Emerson hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .376. It's a different story for Independence, though, as they've only averaged .230. Will they be able to contain Emerson's hitters?
Emerson was able to grind out a solid win over Independence in their previous meeting back in March, winning 7-2. Will the Mavericks repeat their success, or do the Knights have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
