Softball Game Preview: South Newton Rebels vs. North White Vikings

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Previous Games

04/19/24 - Away	4-5 L
04/21/23 - Home	4-15 L
04/22/22 - Away	2-16 L
04/22/22 - Away	6-2 W
04/23/21 - Home	8-7 W
+ 5 more games

South Newton and North White are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2016, but likely not for long. The Rebels will look to defend their home field on Friday against the Vikings at 4:30 p.m. The timing is sure in South Newton's favor as the squad sits on five straight wins at home while North White has been banged up by four consecutive losses on the road.

South Newton proved they can win big on Tuesday (they won by nine) and on Wednesday they proved they can win the close ones too. They had just enough and edged out Twin Lakes 9-8. While the Rebels didn't have the best season last year (they finished 3-17), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.

Hannah Taylor spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and six unearned) runs on seven hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Kimber Cruz was excellent, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI. That triple marked the first that she has hit this season. Another player making a difference was Kayleigh Burton, who went 2-for-3 with two runs.

Meanwhile, North White didn't have quite enough to beat Westville on Thursday and fell 3-1.

North White saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Melanie Crawford, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one RBI.

North White's defeat dropped their record down to 3-6. As for South Newton, their win bumped their record up to 5-2.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. South Newton has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like North White struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.6 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.