The Caledonia Warriors will face off against the Chatfield Gophers at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Caledonia's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They were the clear victors by a 10-0 margin over Wabasha-Kellogg. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Warriors considering their one-run performance the game before.
Meanwhile, Chatfield strolled into their game on Monday with a perfect record and they left with the same. They put the hurt on Dover-Eyota with a sharp 16-4 win. The contest marked the Gophers' most dominant victory of the season so far.
Katryn Johnson and Rylee Urban were major factors no matter where they played. On the mound, Johnson pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Meanwhile, Urban didn't allow a single earned run over four innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks any time she's pitched this season. At bat, Johnson went 1-for-4 with two RBI and one run, while Urban went 2-for-3 with one run.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Grace Finley, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Olivia Karver, who got on base in three of her five plate appearances with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
Chatfield kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in four consecutive matchups.
Caledonia's win was their 14th straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-1. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.4 runs over those games. As for Chatfield, their win bumped their record up to 7-0.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Caledonia has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Chatfield struggles in that department as they've been averaging 10 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Everything went Caledonia's way against Chatfield in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, as Caledonia made off with a 9-2 victory. Will the Warriors repeat their success, or do the Gophers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
