Softball Game Preview: Masuk Panthers vs. Newtown Nighthawks

Masuk is 9-1 against Newtown since April of 2019 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Panthers will be playing at home against the Nighthawks at 4:15 p.m. Masuk will be looking to extend their current seven-game winning streak.

Fans were treated to a battle of the Panthers on Wednesday. Everything went Masuk's way against Pomperaug as they made off with a 12-1 victory. The result was nothing new for Masuk, who have now won six games by six runs or more so far this season.

Julia Bacoulis

Batters Struck Out

05/07/25 @ Pomperaug	8
04/30/25 @ Cheshire	16
04/28/25 vs Notre Dame Prep	10
04/22/25 @ New Milford	12
04/21/25 vs Brookfield	9
+ 3 more games

Julia Bacoulis and Grace Ely were major factors while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Bacoulis struck out eight batters over three innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits (and only one walk). Meanwhile, Ely kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits over four innings pitched. Bacoulis has been consistent: she hasn't tossed less than eight strikeouts in eight consecutive appearances. At the plate, Bacoulis went 2-for-5 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs, while Ely went 2-for-5 with one run and one RBI.

In other batting news, Madison Aguirre was incredible, getting on base in three of her five plate appearances with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Alyssa Castillo, who went 2-for-4 with two runs and one triple.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Newtown, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Saturday. They had just enough and edged out New Milford 3-1. The win continues a trend for the Nighthawks in their matchups with the Green Wave: they've now won eight in a row.

Masuk pushed their record up to 10-1 with the victory, which was their 18th straight on the road dating back to last season. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Newtown, they now have a winning record of 5-4.

Masuk came out on top in a nail-biter against Newtown in their previous meeting back in May of 2024, sneaking past 6-4. Will the Panthers repeat their success, or do the Nighthawks have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.