The Waverly Vikings will take on the Bennington Badgers in a tournament on Thursday. Waverly will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak.
Waverly is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Nebraska's top teams: Standing Bear, who was ranked 14th at the time (Waverly was ranked 13th). The Vikings walked away with a 9-6 victory over the Grizzlies on Tuesday.
Waverly got a great performance from Kael Lade as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over five innings pitched. Lade has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up a single earned run in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Carsen Malcolm and Cy Dewing did most of the damage at the plate: Malcolm went 2-for-3 with three runs, two doubles, and one RBI, while Dewing went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. That's the most runs Malcolm has posted since back in April of 2025. Zach McElhose was another key player, going 1-for-3 with one home run and two RBI.
Waverly was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .379. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Standing Bear only posted a batting average of .250.
Bennington let Gretna East stack four runs on them in the sixth inning on Tuesday but luckily Bennington prevailed anyway. The Badgers narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past the Griffins 8-7.
Brody Lichty looked comfortable as he pitched 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Gabe Nickel, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with two RBI and one run. Another player making a difference was Myles Gifford, who went 1-for-3 with two runs.
Bennington's victory bumped their record up to 10-5. As for Waverly, their win bumped their record up to 10-4.
Waverly was able to grind out a solid victory over Bennington in their previous meeting last Monday, winning 7-2. Will the Vikings repeat their success, or do the Badgers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
