Softball Game Preview: Fond du Lac Cardinals vs. Hortonville Polar Bears

Fond du Lac hasn't had much luck against Hortonville recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Cardinals will be playing in front of their home fans against the Polar Bears at 5:00 p.m. The two teams are strolling into their matches after big wins in their previous games.

Fond du Lac will bounce into Friday's game after beating Oshkosh West, who they had gone 0-9 against in their nine prior meetings. The Cardinals were the clear victors by a 10-2 margin over the Wildcats on Thursday. The contest marked the Cardinals' most dominant victory of the season so far.

Susan Vokes spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned runs on eight hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Lillian Birschbach was incredible, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. She also put up a double, which was her first of the season. Mallory Thorpe was another key player, going 3-for-4 with one run and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Hortonville put another one in the bag on Tuesday to keep their perfect season alive. Everything went their way against Appleton West as they made off with a 12-2 win.

Fond du Lac is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 4-2 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 4.0 runs on average over those games. As for Hortonville, their win bumped their record up to 3-0.

Fond du Lac suffered a grim 13-2 defeat to Hortonville when the teams last played back in May of 2023. Can the Cardinals avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.