The Houston Mustangs will square off against the Gibson County Pioneers at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Houston was handed a ten-run defeat in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Monday. They had just enough and edged out Brighton 5-4.
Madeleine McClure spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and two unearned) runs on five hits.
Lindsey Barnes
| 04/28/25 vs Brighton | 2 |
| 04/23/25 @ Millington Central | 1 |
| 04/21/25 @ Bartlett | 4 |
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Lindsey Barnes, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. She is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as she's now snagged at least one in each of the last three games she's played. Another player making a difference was Kaylea Howell, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Houston was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .407. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Brighton only posted a batting average of .222.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Gibson County). They put the hurt on West Carroll with a sharp 10-3 win on Monday. Winning may never get old, but the Pioneers sure are getting used to it with their third in a row.
Hannah Prestininzi was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Prestininzi was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 4-for-4 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two doubles. Those two runs gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, Haley Mingle and Avery Owens did most of the damage at the plate: Mingle went 3-for-4 with two runs and one double, while Owens went 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. Those two runs gave Owens a new career-high.
Gibson County's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-8-1. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.7 runs on average over those games. As for Houston, their victory ended a five-game drought at home and bumped them up to 10-14.
Gibson County's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Houston has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .462. It's a different story for Gibson County, though, as they've only averaged .315. Will they be able to contain Houston's hitters? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
