Softball Game Preview: Nease Panthers vs. Beachside Barracudas

The Nease Panthers will face off against the Beachside Barracudas at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Nease is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on St. Augustine with a sharp 14-1 victory on Tuesday. The Panthers not only won on Tuesday, but they posted their biggest win since April 1, 2024.

Miranda Harmon was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, three runs, and one triple. That home run was her first of the season. The team also got some help courtesy of Casey Eliason, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one triple and two RBI.

Nease was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .545. The last time their batting average was this high was back in April of 2024.

Meanwhile, Beachside got the win against Bolles on Wednesday by a conclusive 13-6. The result was nothing new for the Barracudas, who have now won seven contests by seven runs or more so far this season.

The team relied heavily on Kyleigh Kendall, who scored two runs while going 2-for-4. Tatum Pocol was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and one double.

Beachside's win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 10-2. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.0 runs over those games. As for Nease, their win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 4-7.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Nease has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Beachside struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more softball content.