DeLand is 0-10 against Spruce Creek since March of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The DeLand Bulldogs are on the road again to play the Spruce Creek Hawks at 4:00 p.m. Both teams come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
DeLand is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Monday. They put the hurt on West Port with a sharp 22-12 victory. Considering DeLand has won 11 matchups by more than five runs this season, Monday's blowout was nothing new.
Payton Mathis was incredible, going 5-for-5 with a home run, four runs, and four RBI. Teagan Squires was another key contributor, going 2-for-5 with three stolen bases, four RBI, and two runs.
Meanwhile, Spruce Creek had already won seven in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 5.9 runs), and they went ahead and made it eight on Thursday. They walked away with a 5-1 win over the Stallions. Five seems to be a good number for Spruce Creek as the squad scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Julie Kelley made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She struck out 12 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and only one walk). Kelley has been consistent recently: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in 11 consecutive pitching appearances. Kelley was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Neena Hernandez, who scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. She has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last four times she's played. Another player making a difference was Alexis Minaberry, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and a double.
DeLand's record now sits at 12-10. As for Spruce Creek, their win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 17-3.
Both both teams just can't seem to miss. DeLand has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 8.9 hits per game. However, it's not like Spruce Creek struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 3. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
DeLand came up short against Spruce Creek when the teams last played two weeks ago, falling 5-0. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Kelley, who didn't allow a single earned run and only one hit while striking out 16 over seven innings pitched. Now that DeLand knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
