The Blue Ridge Knights will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Heritage Hawks at 4:30 p.m. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Blue Ridge is is headed into Friday's match looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their third straight game on Tuesday. They fell just short of Sullivan by a score of 6-4.
Ellie Schlieper spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered four earned (and two unearned) runs on eight hits and racked up 11 Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't pitched less than five innings in four consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Cassie Zimmerman made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored a run and stole a base while going 3-for-3. She is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as she's now stolen at least one in the last eight games she's played. Another player making a difference was Addison Roos, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Thursday just wasn't the day for Heritage's offense. They lost 14-0 to Schlarman on Thursday. Having soared to a lofty 14 runs in the game before, Heritage's shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
Blue Ridge's defeat dropped their record down to 7-14. As for Heritage, their loss dropped their record down to 1-16.
Heritage's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Blue Ridge has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.3 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Heritage, though, as they've been averaging only 3.4. Will Blue Ridge keep running through batters, or will Heritage buck the trend?
Blue Ridge took their win against Heritage when the teams last played back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 12-1. Will Blue Ridge repeat their success, or does Heritage have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
