The Palatka Panthers will square off against the Santa Fe Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Palatka is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand North Marion a 15-0 shutout. Winning may never get old, but the Panthers sure are getting used to it with their ninth in a row.
Charla Griffin was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. She has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in eight consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with two RBI and one run.
Zophia Clark
| 04/29/25 vs North Marion | 1 |
| 04/22/25 vs Clay | 1 |
| 04/17/25 vs Orange Park | 1 |
In other batting news, Zophia Clark was a standout: she went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one stolen base. She has been hot recently, having posted at least one triple the last three times she's played. Abigail Huerta was another key player, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Palatka was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .556. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .304 or higher in nine consecutive matchups.
Santa Fe never got on the board in their matchup two weeks ago, but that sure wasn't the case in their game against Eastside on Tuesday. They blew past the Rams 16-0.
Makenna Payne looked comfortable as she pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Maren Hornsby, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI. That's the most runs she has posted since back in February. Catie Bell also deserves some recognition as she brought in her first RBI of the season.
Santa Fe is on a roll lately: they've won 13 of their last 15 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 18-3 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.2 runs over those games. As for Palatka, they pushed their record up to 16-10 with the victory, which was their sixth straight at home.
Both Palatka and Santa Fe just can't seem to miss. The Panthers have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.5 hits per game. However, it's not like Santa Fe struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 5 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Palatka came out on top in a nail-biter against Santa Fe when the teams last played back in April, sneaking past 5-4. Will the Panthers repeat their success, or do the Raiders have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
