Newburyport Clippers (Newburyport, MA) backers exited the stadium thrilled Wednesday as they saw their softball squad nip the visiting North Reading Hornets (North Reading, MA), 7-6 in a league challenge.

The Clippers now own a 5-3 record. They take the field next when they host Haverhill for a non-league challenge on Friday, May 24. Newburyport will face a Hillies squad coming off a 12-2 non-league win over Academy of Notre Dame (Tyngsborough, MA). The Hillies record now stands at 7-10.

With the loss, North Reading falls to 6-2 on the campaign. The Hornets host Gloucester (Gloucester, MA) to face the Fishermen in a non-league challenge on Friday, May 24. The Fishermen enter the challenge with a record of 4-4. Gloucester won 17-1 in their recent league challenge against Winthrop (Winthrop, MA)