A feisty cat fight will be fought as Cardinal Newman Cardinals face off against Benicia Panthers at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Benicia took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Cardinal Newman, who comes in off a win.
Cardinal Newman barely beat St. Helena the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. Cardinal Newman's pitchers stepped up to hand St. Helena an 8-0 shutout on Friday.
Andrea Mansbery was incredible, going 4-for-5 with four RBI, two runs, and one triple. That's the most runs she has posted since back in April of 2024. Giana Tamayo was another key player, going 3-for-5 with two RBI and one double.
Mansbery wasn't the only one working in the hit department: Cardinal Newman kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits every time they've taken the field this season.
Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Benicia's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. They fell 9-4 to Amador Valley.
Benicia saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kaity Nichols, who scored a run while going 2-for-4. Nichols also hit a double, marking her first of the season.
Cardinal Newman's victory was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 2-1. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.9 runs over those games. As for Benicia, their loss dropped their record down to 3-2.
Benicia's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Cardinal Newman has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 10.7 hits per game. It's a different story for Benicia, though, as they've been averaging 9.2 hits. Given Cardinal Newman's sizable advantage in that area, Benicia will need to find a way to close that gap. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more softball content.
