The Palma Chieftains will head out to square off against the Gilroy Mustangs at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
On Wednesday, Palma beat North Salinas 7-2.
Sophia Cardinale made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off six hits (and only one walk). She has been consistent : she hasn't given up more than one walk any time she's pitched this season. She was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in all three of her plate appearances. She also put up an RBI, which was her first of the season.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Brianna Hernandez, who scored a run while going 2-for-3. Those hits marked the first that she got this season. Another player making a difference was Ashlyn Urmanita, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
Meanwhile, while Gilroy put up some runs on Tuesday, the same can't be said for Westmont. The Mustangs skirted past the Warriors 1-0. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Mustangs.
Not much got past Ariela Yslava, who gave up just three hits and racked up 13 Ks to keep Westmont off the board.
At the plate, Jennie Hernandez was excellent, going 1-for-3 with one home run. The team also got some help courtesy of Dani Wilson, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one stolen base.
Gilroy hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Westmont struck out 13 times.
Gilroy pushed their record up to 10-4 with the victory, which was their fourth straight on the road. Those road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.8 runs over those games. As for Palma, their record now sits at 4-7.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Palma hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.5 home runs per game. However, it's not like Gilroy struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.9 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other softball content.
