The Genoa-Kingston Cogs will face off against the Oregon Hawks at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Genoa-Kingston has given up an average of 10.4 runs per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Genoa-Kingston managed to slip by Stillman Valley the last time these teams faced off, but didn't have those same answers this time around. The Cogs lost 19-1 to the Cardinals on Tuesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Cogs have suffered since April 8th.
Meanwhile, Oregon entered their tilt with Lutheran on Tuesday with five consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with six. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Crusaders a 15-0 shutout. Give the Hawks' pitching crew some credit: that's the team's third straight shutout.
Brooke Halverson was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out nine over four innings pitched. Those nine strikeouts gave her a new career-high. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with one RBI.
In other batting news, Lola Schwarz and Isabelle Berg did most of the damage at the plate: Schwarz went 2-for-3 with one home run, four runs, and three RBI, while Berg went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and two doubles. That's the most doubles Berg has posted since back in March. Abree Barker was another key player, going 1-for-2 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI.
Oregon kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in six consecutive contests.
Genoa-Kingston's defeat ended a four-game streak of away wins and brought them to 7-9-1. As for Oregon, their victory bumped their record up to 13-4.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Genoa-Kingston hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 1.1 home runs per game. However, it's not like Oregon struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.5 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Everything went Genoa-Kingston's way against Oregon in their previous meeting back in May of 2024, as Genoa-Kingston made off with a 10-2 win. Do the Cogs have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Hawks turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
