The Doral Academy Firebirds will take on the Miami Beach Hi-Tides at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Doral Academy is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Monday. They never let Dr. Krop get on the board and left with a 15-0 win. Winning may never get old, but the Firebirds sure are getting used to it with their seventh in a row.
Meagan Villazon was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out six batters over two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in eight consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with one triple. That triple marked the first that she has hit this season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Anabela Abdullah, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, two runs, and one triple. Another player making a difference was Leyani Viruet, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI.
Doral Academy always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .857. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Miami Beach). They put the hurt on Flanagan with a sharp 20-5 victory on Monday. That's two games straight that the Hi-Tides have won by exactly 15 runs.
Miami Beach got a massive performance out of Anna Mesarina, who went 2-for-3 with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. That's the most runs Mesarina has posted since back in March. Gabriella Torossian was another key player, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with two runs and two RBI.
Doral Academy pushed their record up to 25-1 with the win, which was their 25th straight at home dating back to last season. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.9 runs on average over those games. As for Miami Beach, the win made it two in a row for them and bumps their season record up to 13-5.
Wednesday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Doral Academy hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .394. However, it's not like Miami Beach struggles in that department as they've averaged .437. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Everything went Doral Academy's way against Miami Beach in their previous meeting back in May of 2023, as Doral Academy made off with a 16-0 victory. Will the Firebirds repeat their success, or do the Hi-Tides have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
