Marian Catholic hasn't had much luck against Tri-Valley recently, but that could start to change on Tuesday. Marian Catholic will take on Tri-Valley at 5:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Tri-Valley will be up against a hot Marian Catholic team: the squad just extended their winning streak to four. Marian Catholic blew past Shenandoah Valley 14-3 on Friday. 14 seems to be a good number for Marian Catholic as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Marian Catholic let Gracie Sendatch and Zoe Katona run wild. Sendatch went 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI, while Katona went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. That's the most stolen bases Katona has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Hailey Treskolasky, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with one triple, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Tri-Valley, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Friday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Nativity BVM a 15-0 shutout on Friday. The high-scoring effort was just what the Bulldogs needed considering they were shut out in their previous matchup.
Alina Leonard made a big impact no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). Leonard was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 4-for-4 with three RBI and two runs.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Savanah Stiely, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with four RBI and one run. Another player making a difference was Olivia Witmer, who went 1-for-2 with two runs and two RBI.
Marian Catholic pushed their record up to 13-9 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Tri-Valley, they have been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 17-6 record this season.
Tuesday's game might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Marian Catholic has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .494. However, it's not like Tri-Valley struggles in that department as they've averaged .469. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Marian Catholic suffered a grim 11-1 defeat to Tri-Valley in their previous matchup on May 8th. Can Marian Catholic avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
