Softball Game Preview: Liberty-Benton Eagles vs. Elida Bulldogs

The Liberty-Benton Eagles will square off against the Elida Bulldogs at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Liberty-Benton has three straight victories, Elida has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.

Liberty-Benton is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They blew past Bath 16-7 on Monday. The result was nothing new for the Eagles, who have now won three games by nine runs or more so far this season.

Reagan Knapke

Base on Balls Against

03/31/25 vs Bath	0
03/29/25 @ Ottawa-Glandorf	2
03/27/25 vs Hopewell-Loudon	1

Reagan Knapke spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three runs (all of which were unearned) on seven hits and racked up eight Ks. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Liberty-Benton let Kylie Steinman and Hayden Gillig run wild. Steinman went 3-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs, while Gillig went 3-for-4 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. Steinman has been hot recently, having also posted at least one stolen base the last three times she's played. Another player making a difference was Lauren Erdeljac, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4.

They weren't the only ones working in the hit department: Liberty-Benton kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 16 hits. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their hit total in three consecutive matchups.

Fans were treated to a battle of the Bulldogs on Saturday. Elida came up short against Edgerton, falling 9-1.

Elida's loss dropped their record down to 1-3. As for Liberty-Benton, their win bumped their record up to 3-1.

Liberty-Benton took their victory against Elida in their previous meeting back in May of 2024 by a conclusive 9-2. Will Liberty-Benton repeat their success, or does Elida has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.