Softball Game Preview: East Duplin Panthers vs. West Carteret Patriots

The East Duplin Panthers will head out to take on the West Carteret Patriots at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Neither East Duplin nor West Carteret posted many runs in their last games, so it might be the pitching crews that decide this one.

East Duplin easily dispatched Clinton on Thursday, but unfortunately both the margin and the ultimate result were a different story in this one. East Duplin fell just short of Richlands by a score of 2-0 on Friday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest defeat the Panthers have suffered since March 27, 2024.

Meanwhile, West Carteret put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They came out on top in a nail-biter against J.H. Rose, sneaking past 2-0.

The result came thanks to Caitlin Dumarce's shutout, as she gave up just a hit and racked up 19 Ks. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up a single earned run any time she's pitched this season.

On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Kyrstyn Braswell, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one triple and two RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March of 2024.

West Carteret's victory bumped their record up to 3-0. As for East Duplin, their loss dropped their record down to 1-1.