Kissimmee, FL-June 22, 2016- The USSSA Florida Pride powered past the PA Rebellion Wednesday night with a 3-0 win in game three at CONSOL Energy Park. A strong pitching match kept the game close but the Pride were able to capitalize when it mattered.
Player of the game, Chelsea Thomas, tossed a complete game, four-hit shutout, and struck out seven Rebellion batters to earn her fourth win of the season. This is the third time in the last four games the Pride pitching staff has pitched a shutout against the PA Rebellion.
“I think I kept my pitch count low and then Chelsea Goodacre called a heck of a game behind the plate. We were on the same page the whole time and I didn’t have to shake off at all, we were just right on the same page so it was pretty good,” Chelsea Thomas recounted about her performance Wednesday night.
Following three scoreless innings, Shelby Pendley got the first hit of the night in the top of the 4th. Pendley blasted a solo shot to straight away center that put the Pride on the board first, 1-0, her third of the season.
The Rebellion responded in the bottom of the fourth with three consecutive singles to load the bases. Chelsea Thomas worked her way out of the jam forcing Lexie Elkins to hit into an inning ending double play executed by Pride shortstop Shelby Pendley.
“They got hits on pitches that I wanted to them to hit but when you have a defense like Shelby at shortstop when you can throw up a ball and she cant turn a double play in a heartbeat it’s awesome to have. They made a great couple double plays there to finish the game and our defense is really solid right now,” Thomas added about the Pride defense.
In the top of the 5th, Chelsea Goodacre and Kirsti Merritt contributed back-to-back homers to give the Pride a 3 run advantage. The solo shot was Goodacre’s second home run of the season and marked Merritt’s first professional career home run.
In the final innings, Chelsea Thomas kept the Rebellion hitters at bay, struck out two and finished the seventh by forcing a game ending double play.
Win the win, the Pride improve to 8-3 on the season. The USSSA Pride will face the PA Rebellion in Eastern Pennsylvania for a two-game series at Coca-Cola Park out of Lehigh Valley. Tonight’s game is set for a 7:05 PM (ET) start time. Catch all the action live on NPFTV via profastpitch.com.
Final Score:
USSSA Pride: 3
PA Rebellion: 0
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About USSSA Florida Pride: The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.
About USSSA: The United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), headquartered in Osceola County, Florida, USSSA is the World’s Largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA.
About National Pro Fastpitch (NPF): National Pro Fastpitch (NPF), an Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball since 2002, provides elite female athletes with an opportunity to pursue a professional career in diamond sports beyond their collegiate success. The 2016 NPF season will be televised on CBS Sports Network. Coverage includes the NPF College Draft presented by Bownet on Thur., April 14, followed by 23 regular-season games, a Championship Series Preview Special and the 2016 NPF Championship Series. The NPF recently announced that the Scrap Yard Dawgs, located in The Woodlands, Texas, will join the Akron Racers, Chicago Bandits, Dallas Charge, Pennsylvania Rebellion and USSSA Florida Pride for the 2016 season. National Pro Fastpitch players hail from the U.S., Australia, Canada, Japan, the Netherlands and New Zealand, representing the most accomplished and talented athletes in the sport of women’s softball