Waverly hasn't had much luck against Norris recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Vikings will venture away from home to challenge the Titans at 5:00 p.m. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Waverly sitting on five straight wins and Norris on seven.
Waverly is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Nebraska's top teams: Gretna East, who was ranked 25th at the time (Waverly was ranked 16th). The Vikings had just enough and edged out the Griffins 7-5. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Vikings have posted since March 28th.
Drew Koch made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Koch was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one triple, two RBI, and one run. That triple marked the first that he hit this season.
Carsen Malcolm
| 04/15/25 @ Gretna East | 4 |
| 04/10/25 vs Nebraska City | 3 |
| 04/12/25 @ Lincoln Northwest | 2 |
| 04/05/25 @ Standing Bear | 2 |
| 03/28/25 vs North Platte | 2 |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Carsen Malcolm, who scored two runs while going 4-for-5. Those four hits gave him a new career-high. Bruin Sampson was another key player, scoring a run while going 2-for-5.
Meanwhile, Norris won against Standing Bear on Friday with six runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. The Titans walked away with a 6-2 win over Blair.
Eli Starner looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been consistent : he hasn't given up more than two hits any time he's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Norris saw eight different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ashton Monroe, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Norris hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Blair struck out ten times.
Norris' victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-2. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.8 runs on average over those games. As for Waverly, their record is now 11-5.
Thursday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Waverly hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .323. However, it's not like Norris struggles in that department as they've averaged .351. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Waverly couldn't quite finish off Norris in their previous meeting back in March and fell 7-5. Can the Vikings avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
