The Port Neches-Groves Indians will take on the Nederland Bulldogs at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Nederland will be up against a hot Port Neches-Groves squad: the team just extended their winning streak to eight. Port Neches-Groves put the hurt on Kingwood Park with a sharp 11-3 victory on Friday.
Kalli Smith spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and two unearned) runs on four hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Port Neches-Groves got a big performance out of Mya Beresford, who scored a run and stole a base while going 3-for-4. Kiana Ledoux was another key player, scoring a run while getting on base in all three of her plate appearances.
Port Neches-Groves hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most five strikeouts in 11 consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Nederland came tearing into Tuesday's game with nine straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.1 runs), and they left with even more momentum. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Timberwolves a 15-0 shutout.
Emmy Chambless was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing four bases while going 2-for-2. Those four stolen bases gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Saydee Montoya, who went 1-for-2 with three RBI, one triple, and one run.
Port Neches-Groves pushed their record up to 15-2 with the win, which was their 12th straight at home. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.3 runs on average over those games. As for Nederland, their victory bumped their record up to 10-1.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Port Neches-Groves has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Nederland struggles in that department as they've been averaging 2.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Everything went Port Neches-Groves' way against Nederland when the teams last played back in April of 2024, as Port Neches-Groves made off with a 10-2 win. Will Port Neches-Groves repeat their success, or does Nederland have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
