Softball Game Preview: Augusta Beavers vs. Melrose-Mindoro Mustangs

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Previous Games

04/15/25 - Home	2-13 L
05/03/24 - Away	3-6 L
04/11/24 - Home	2-9 L
05/09/23 - Away	6-7 L
05/04/23 - Home	2-18 L
+ 5 more games

Augusta and Melrose-Mindoro are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2016, but likely not for long. The Beavers will square off against the Mustangs at 5:00 p.m. on Thursday. Melrose-Mindoro took a loss in their last contest and will be looking to turn the tables on Augusta, who comes in off a win.

Augusta came out on top against Alma Center Lincoln on Tuesday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run fourth inning. The Beavers' pitcher stepped up to hand the Hornets a 10-0 shutout. The win continues a trend for the Beavers in their matchups with the Hornets: they've now won nine in a row.

Brooklyn Krueger made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out nine over six innings pitched. Krueger was also big at the plate, going a perfect 3-for-3 with three RBI and one double.

In other batting news, Rilee Bethke was excellent, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. Stella Zank also deserves some recognition as she snagged her first stolen bases of the season.

Meanwhile, after a string of four wins, Melrose-Mindoro's good fortune finally ran out on Tuesday. They fell just short of Pepin/Alma by a score of 2-1. Having soared to a lofty 12 runs in the game before, the Mustangs couldn't push the score so high this time.

Melrose-Mindoro saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Cooper Zeman, who went 1-for-4 with two stolen bases and one run.

The victory got Augusta back to even at 5-5. As for Melrose-Mindoro, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-2.

Augusta suffered a grim 13-2 defeat to Melrose-Mindoro in their previous meeting two weeks ago. Can the Beavers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.