Castilleja is 1-9 against Notre Dame since March of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. Castilleja will look to take advantage of their home field for the first time this season as they takes on Notre Dame at 4:00 p.m. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Castilleja was handed a 15-run defeat in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Wednesday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 9-7 victory over El Camino.
Raina Kapadia
| 03/26/25 @ El Camino | 14 |
| 03/20/25 @ Menlo-Atherton | 1 |
| 03/07/25 @ Harker | 5 |
Raina Kapadia made a splash while hitting and pitching. She struck out 14 batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned (and five unearned) runs off four hits. With that strong performance, she is now averaging an impressive 6.7 strikeouts per game. She was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, Katherine Cheng was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 1-for-3. She is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as she's now snagged at least one in each of the last five games she's played dating back to last season. Anya Delal was another key player, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Notre Dame, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Wednesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Mercy a 7-0 shutout on Wednesday. The Regents haven't had any issues with the Bears recently, as the game was their third consecutive win against them.
Like Castilleja, Notre Dame also got a great game from a two-way player: Anya Shah. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out 13 over seven innings pitched. Shah was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kamille Beals, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Alex Vera, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
Notre Dame pushed their record up to 6-6 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. A key ingredient in that success has been their performance when it comes to hits: they averaged an imposing 11.67 hits in those games compared to only 4.89 in the others. As for Castilleja, the win got them back to even at 2-2.
Castilleja's speedy runners might be the difference in Friday's game. Castilleja has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.2 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Notre Dame, though, as they've been averaging only 0.8 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Castilleja continue to outrun the ball?
Castilleja suffered a grim 14-4 defeat to Notre Dame in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Will Castilleja have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other softball content.
