The Little Chute Mustangs will head out on the road to square off against the Reedsville Panthers at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Little Chute's pitching crew has only allowed 2.9 runs per game this season, so Reedsville's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Little Chute is probably headed into the game with a chip on their shoulder considering Denmark just ended the team's nine-game winning streak on Thursday. They took a 4-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Vikings. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last five times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Meanwhile, Reedsville entered their tilt with Hilbert on Thursday with three consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with four. They put the hurt on the Wolves with a sharp 11-5 win. Considering the Panthers have won seven contests by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Logan Maertz made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He tossed 4.2 innings while giving up just one earned (and three unearned) runs off two hits. Maertz was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one run and one RBI. That's the most hits he has posted since back in April of 2024.
In other batting news, Nathan Christensen was a standout: he went 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. That's the most runs he has posted since back in May of 2024. Another player making a difference was Sawyer Ubersox, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Reedsville hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least four batters in four consecutive matchups.
Reedsville pushed their record up to 10-5 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.0 runs over those games. As for Little Chute, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-3.
Little Chute was able to grind out a solid victory over Reedsville when the teams last played back in April of 2024, winning 6-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Mustangs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
