Softball Game Preview: Niles West Wolves vs. Lane Tech Champions

Niles West is 1-9 against Lane Tech since April of 2017 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Monday. The Wolves will be playing at home against the Champions at 4:45 p.m.

Niles West is headed into Monday's matchup looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their fourth straight game on Saturday. They came up short against Hersey, falling 10-2. That's two games in a row now that the Wolves have lost by exactly eight runs.

Niles West saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Lexi Kuffel, who scored a run while going 2-for-2. Ava Kolbe was another, going 2-for-4 with two stolen bases and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Lane Tech entered their tilt with DePaul College Prep on Friday with two consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with three. They never let the Rams get on the board and left with an 11-0 victory. The Champions might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five contests by 11 runs or more this season.

The team relied heavily on Grace Brobson, who scored four runs and stole three bases while going 3-for-4. Those three stolen bases gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Emma Casillas, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one triple, two RBI, and one run.

Lane Tech was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. They are a perfect 6-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.

Niles West's loss dropped their record down to 2-6. As for Lane Tech, they now have a winning record of 6-5.

Niles West suffered a grim 13-2 defeat to Lane Tech in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Can the Wolves avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.