Ricketts Returns and Blaze Win Tight One Over Volts, 3 to 1
Blaze Respond with Grit in Seattle
In the nightcap, I guess I can say for us in the East, the Blaze came in looking to keep fighting as a team and searching for another win. Last night was a tough one, but tonight they prevailed, winning 3-1 over the Volts.
Early Offense Sets the Tone
The Blaze started the game off with a run after Aubrey Leach reached on a one-out single and made it all the way around on a Baylee Klingler RBI single to make it 1-0.
In the third, Leach would score her second run of the game as Ana Gold tacked on an RBI double to take a 2-0 lead.
Things stayed there for a bit, as Sam Landry kept the fourth inning clean. Landry would exit after four innings pitched, allowing two runs on five hits with three strikeouts and three walks. It was not a horrible outing, but she really just did not get run support.
Payton Gottshall would finish the rest for the Volts, and things were pretty efficient for her, other than a big swing by McKenzie Clark in the top of the sixth to give the Blaze their third and final run. That made it 3-1, and that is how it stood the rest of the way.
New Faces and Strong Arms Step Up
In a low scoring affair, what stood out was the pitching. It was pretty much like a new look staff for the Blaze. Aliyah Binford made her first start in Rosemont earlier this week, Devyn Netz just arrived via trade from the Bandits, and Keilani Ricketts had not pitched since June 15 in Chattanooga due to injury.
Binford was stellar in the three innings she threw, giving up just two hits and no runs. She did a great job inducing ground balls to keep the Volts from generating the kind of traffic they did last night. In 11 batters faced, five were retired via ground out.
That says trust in her defense behind her to make the plays.
Ricketts Returns with Confidence
Keilani Ricketts was back in action after almost a month away from the field. In 2.1 innings, she completely shut down the Volts. Ricketts led with four strikeouts in her outing, as her stuff was as effective as it has always been.
To be able to come back and do that the first time out in a long time has to shoot her confidence and vibes through the roof.
“Lani’s had her own process that she has had to work through. You know, all of us have seen her every day at practice in the bullpen, and we all know what it is like when you are bouncing back from injury and whatnot. So I do not think we could have been any happier with what we got to see from them all, but definitely happy for Lani, because she had to work through a lot,” said Coach Alisa Goler after the game.
Blaze Still Fighting
The Blaze have been battling all season, often coming up short. Still sitting with a 4-13 record and in last place, they have the chance to finish strong. With a win on Sunday, they would be just one game back from the Volts.
This is not a bad team. They have great players who have shown they can get the job done. Based on the way they have come out of the break and are getting after it, I would not be surprised to see them pull off some big wins coming up.
The culture and happiness that this team displays says a lot about the heart and mindset they have in that locker room.
Sunday brings a rubber match, with the Blaze and Volts set to face off at 4:00 PM EDT on MLB.com or FanDuel Sports Network.
