Softball Game Preview: Hickory Hawks vs. Menchville Monarchs

The Hickory Hawks will venture away from home to face off against the Menchville Monarchs at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.

Hickory had to skate by with only a one-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the ten-run drubbing they dealt Deep Creek on Wednesday. The Hawks never let the Hornets get on the board and left with a 10-0 win. Winning may never get old, but the Hawks sure are getting used to it with their fifth in a row.

Meanwhile, Menchville got the win against Woodside on Thursday by a conclusive 14-3. With that victory, the Monarchs brought their scoring average up to 6.5 runs per game.

Menchville let Brielle Creque (2027) and Olivia Rivera (2026) run wild. Creque (2027) went a perfect 3-for-3 with four RBI, two runs, and one double, while Rivera (2026) went a perfect 1-for-1 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. That home run was Rivera (2026)'s first of the season. Another player making a difference was Suki Gibbons (2027), who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs and one triple.

Menchville hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least four batters in three consecutive matchups.

Hickory pushed their record up to 13-1 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.8 runs on average over those games. As for Menchville, they now have a winning record of 6-5.

Hickory was able to grind out a solid win over Menchville when the teams last played back in March of 2024, winning 8-4. Do the Hawks have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Monarchs turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.