Softball Preview: Fort Calhoun Pioneers vs. Bishop Neumann Cavaliers
Fort Calhoun is 1-9 against Bishop Neumann since September of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Fort Calhoun Pioneers will head out to take on the Bishop Neumann Cavaliers. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Bishop Neumann is hoping to do what Raymond Central couldn't on Tuesday: put an end to Fort Calhoun's winning streak, which now stands at three games. Fort Calhoun blew past Raymond Central 12-1.
Addison Benoit was a standout: she went 1-for-1 with a home run and four RBI. That home run was her first of the season. The team also got some help courtesy of Tacey Belina, who went 1-for-2 with a home run, three RBI, and two runs.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Fort Calhoun always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .591. The last time their OBP was this high was back in September of 2023.
Meanwhile, Bishop Neumann faced Wayne in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. Everything went Bishop Neumann's way against Wayne as Bishop Neumann made off with an 8-2 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Cavaliers.
Addison Sylliaasen spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned runs on four hits and racked up seven Ks. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in six consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Ana Fisher, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with a home run and three runs. Another player making a difference was Isabelle Stuhr, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.
Fort Calhoun's record is now 5-1. As for Bishop Neumann, their victory was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 7-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Fort Calhoun hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 1 home runs per game. However, it's not like Bishop Neumann struggles in that department as they've been averaging 1.2. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Fort Calhoun suffered a grim 15-3 defeat to Bishop Neumann in their previous meeting back in August of 2023. Can Fort Calhoun avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
