The Vanguard Knights will face off against the Tavares Bulldogs at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Vanguard's pitching crew has only allowed four runs per game this season, so Tavares' hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Vanguard is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past Lecanto 4-2. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Knights have posted since March 28th.
Hannah Davis spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned runs on five hits and racked up nine Ks.
On the hitting side, Jaelynn Whipple was excellent, going a perfect 3-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. Another player making a difference was Cadence Abbott, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Tavares entered their tilt with Citrus on Tuesday with six consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with seven. They beat the Hurricanes by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 6-2.
Emersyn Lee made a big impact no matter where she played. She didn't allow a single earned run while striking out seven over seven innings pitched. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in nine consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with two runs.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jasmine Lawrence, who went 1-for-3 with one triple, one run, and one RBI.
Vanguard has been performing well recently as they've won nine of their last 12 matches. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-9 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.2 runs on average over those games. As for Tavares, their win was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-7.
Vanguard skirted past Tavares 6-4 when the teams last played back in May of 2023. Do the Knights have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Bulldogs turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
