The Dundalk Owls will take on the Franklin Indians at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.
Dundalk easily dispatched Western Tech & Environmental Science on Friday, but unfortunately both the margin and the ultimate result were a different story in this one. Dundalk fell just short of Hereford by a score of 3-1 on Tuesday. Having soared to a lofty 14 runs in the game before, the Owls couldn't push the score so high this time.
Julie Burger spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned runs on six hits and racked up 11 Ks.
On the hitting side, Dundalk saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kenisha Gelpi, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-4.
Meanwhile, Franklin put another one in the bag on Tuesday to keep their perfect season alive. Everything went their way against Parkville as Franklin made off with a 19-3 victory. Fans of the Indians have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 6+ runs.
Scarlett Cornwell made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over four innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts any time she's pitched this season. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
In other batting news, Lanee Houser was a standout: she got on base in four of her five plate appearances with one home run, three runs, and three RBI. Lindsay Trager was another key player, going 4-for-5 with three runs, four RBI, and one double.
Dundalk's defeat dropped their record down to 1-1. As for Franklin, their win bumped their record up to 3-0.
Dundalk took their victory against Franklin when the teams last played back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 11-0. Will Dundalk repeat their success, or does Franklin has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
