The Northampton Yellowjackets will take on the Arcadia Firebirds at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Northampton has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the contest with seven straight defeats, while Arcadia will come in with five straight wins.
Northampton came up short against Chincoteague on Thursday, falling 18-2.
Ryleigh Caison was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI.
Meanwhile, Arcadia got themselves on the board against Nandua on Thursday, but Nandua never followed suit. They blew past the Warriors 10-0. The Firebirds might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won ten games by six runs or more this season.
Ryann Giddens made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out nine over six innings pitched. She has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in seven consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with three stolen bases, three runs, and one triple. Those three stolen bases gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Brinlee Kauthen, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with two triples, three RBI, and two runs. That's the most triples she has posted since back in April. Payton Taylor was another key player, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Arcadia always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .533. They are a perfect 6-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Arcadia's victory was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-7. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.2 runs on average over those games. As for Northampton, their loss dropped their record down to 3-13.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Monday as neither team is afraid to steal. Northampton has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.9 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Arcadia struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.6 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Northampton suffered a grim 16-0 defeat to Arcadia in their previous meeting two weeks ago. Will the Yellowjackets have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
