After two games on the road, Air Academy is heading back home. They will welcome the Cheyenne Mountain Red-Tailed Hawks at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Air Academy is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.8 runs per game this season.
Last Wednesday, Air Academy came up short against Discovery Canyon and fell 9-6. The loss continues a trend for the Kadets in their matchups with the Thunder: they've now lost six in a row.
Bailey Williams was huge no matter where she played even without the win. She looked comfortable on the mound, tossing six innings while giving up four earned (and five unearned) runs off seven hits. Williams was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with four RBI and a double.
In other batting news, Kylen Tucker made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored two runs while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Keira Finkle, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-4.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Cheyenne Mountain). They were the clear victor by a 20-3 margin over Lewis-Palmer on Wednesday. The Red-Tailed Hawks might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five matches by ten runs or more this season.
Like Air Academy, Cheyenne Mountain also got a great game from a two-way player: Jaylah Rivera. On the mound, Rivera struck out 11 batters over five innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off three hits. Meanwhile, Danica Unger pitched an inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. That's the most hits Rivera has posted since back in October of 2023. At the plate, Rivera scored five runs and stole two bases while getting on base in all six of her plate appearances, while Unger scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-2. With that strong performance, Rivera is now averaging an impressive 2.2 runs per game.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Abbi Houger, who scored two runs and stole two bases while getting on base in four of her five plate appearances. The dominant performance gave her a new career-high in OBP. The team also got some help courtesy of Nevaeh Lee, who went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Cheyenne Mountain hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most five strikeouts in nine consecutive matchups.
Air Academy's defeat dropped their record down to 3-10. As for Cheyenne Mountain, they have been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five games, which provided a nice bump to their 8-3 record this season.
Air Academy came up short against Cheyenne Mountain in their previous matchup back in October of 2023, falling 9-6. Will Air Academy have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other softball content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
