Markesan is a perfect 5-0 against Rio since April of 2019 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Hornets will be playing at home against the Vikings at 5:00 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Markesan has four straight victories, Rio has six straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Markesan will bounce into Thursday's matchup after beating Johnson Creek, who they had gone 0-3 against in their three prior meetings. The Hornets came out on top against the Bluejays by a score of 17-13 on Tuesday. Markesan's win was all the more impressive since the Bluejays were averaging only 3.82 runs allowed on the season.
Jackson Laper
| 05/05/26 @ Johnson Creek | 4 |
| 05/01/26 vs Chilton | 3 |
| 04/23/26 @ Cambria-Friesland | 3 |
| 04/07/26 @ Montello | 3 |
| 05/04/26 @ Rio | 2 |
Markesan saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jackson Laper, who went 4-for-6 with four runs, two doubles, and two RBI. Those four runs gave Laper a new career-high. Ian Emkow was another, going 1-for-4 with four runs and one stolen base.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Markesan 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 12 hits in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Rio lost 19-2 to Markesan on Monday.
Miles Hall was cooking despite his team's loss, going 1-for-2 with one home run and two RBI. He also put up a run, which was his first of the season.
Markesan's victory bumped their record up to 12-4. As for Rio, their loss dropped their record down to 0-5.
Rio's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Markesan hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .354. It's a different story for Rio, though, as they've only averaged .095. Will they be able to contain Markesan's hitters?
Everything went Markesan's way against Rio in their previous meeting on Monday, as Markesan made off with a 19-2 win. Will the Hornets repeat their success, or do the Vikings have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
