The Northern Durham Knights will square off against the Wake Forest Cougars at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Northern Durham has struggled recently with six losses in a row, while Wake Forest will arrive with four straight victories.
Northern Durham fought the good fight in their extra-innings matchup against Person on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Rockets by a score of 13-11. One positive for the Knights, at least, is that this was the most points they've scored all season.
Northern Durham got a massive performance out of Taya Gelbert, who scored three runs and stole Two bases. while going 3-for-4. Those hits were Gelbert's first of the season. AnnaClaire Spell was another key player, going 2-for-4 with four RBI and two doubles.
Gelbert wasn't the only one working in the hit department: Northern Durham kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 15 hits. That's the most hits they've posted since back in March of 2024.
Meanwhile, Wake Forest never let their opponents score on Monday. They came out on top against Roxboro Community by a score of 3-0.
The result came thanks to Jil Livengood's shutout, as she gave up just a hit and racked up 19 Ks. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up a single earned run any time she's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Wake Forest saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Cara Nguyen, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one double, and one RBI. Those two hits gave Nguyen a new career-high. Another was Kaylee Bowers, who went 1-for-2 with one double and one RBI.
Wake Forest's win bumped their record up to 4-0. As for Northern Durham, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-5.
Northern Durham's speedy runners might be the difference in Tuesday's contest. Northern Durham has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.8 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Wake Forest, though, as they've been averaging only 0.5 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Northern Durham continue to outrun the ball? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
