Softball Game Preview: Mission Valley Vikings vs. Hayden Wildcats

The Mission Valley Vikings will face off against the Hayden Wildcats at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.

Mission Valley is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They blew past Lyndon 18-2 on Thursday. The Vikings haven't had any issues with the Tigers recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive win against them.

Keely Chesmore made a splash while hitting and pitching. She tossed four innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits. Chesmore was even better at the plate, going a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run and five RBI. That home run marked the first that she launched this season.

In other batting news, Mission Valley got a massive performance out of Kailynn Jacobson, who scored two runs while going 3-for-4. Another player making a difference was Kaitlyn Coursen, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.

Mission Valley always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .618. The last time their OBP was this high was back in May of 2024.

Meanwhile, Hayden got the win against Emporia on Wednesday by a conclusive 11-3. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Wildcats.

Olivia Kennedy spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and two unearned) runs on two hits and racked up seven Ks.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Karie Mead, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2. Kennedy Compton was another key player, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.

Mission Valley's victory bumped their record up to 4-2. As for Hayden, their win bumped their record up to 2-0.