The Tonopah Muckers will be defending their home field for the first time this season when they go up against the Mineral County Serpents at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Tonopah's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They blew past Beatty 18-0. The win continues a trend for the Muckers in their matchups with the Hornets: they've now won four in a row.
Liberty Deck made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). Those zero hits allowed gave her a new career-low. She was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in all three of her plate appearances. That's the most stolen bases she has posted since back in April of 2024.
In other batting news, Hannah Baudoin and Alyssa Maurer did most of the damage at the plate: Baudoin went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, five RBI, and three runs, while Maurer went 2-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI. That's the most runs Maurer has posted since back in April of 2024. Another player making a difference was Tiffany Snyder, who scored two runs while going 1-for-2.
Tonopah was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .462. They are 2-1 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Mineral County put another one in the bag on Tuesday to keep their perfect season alive. They were the clear victors by a 19-4 margin over Lone Pine. Fans of the Serpents have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout of 6+ runs.
Mineral County got a massive performance out of Raeane Johnson, who scored two runs and stole three bases while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances. Johnson is crushing it when it comes to stolen bases: she's snagged at least two every time she's taken the field this season. Caitlynn Sanchez was another key player, scoring four runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances.
Mineral County pushed their record up to 3-0 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they've averaged 19.3 runs this season. As for Tonopah, their victory bumped their record up to 2-4.
Saturday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Tonopah hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .326. However, it's not like Mineral County struggles in that department as they've averaged .603. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Tonopah took their win against Mineral County in their previous matchup back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 29-11. Will Tonopah repeat their success, or does Mineral County has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
