The Iola-Scandinavia Thunderbirds will venture away from home to challenge the Almond-Bancroft Eagles at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Marathon hit Iola-Scandinavia with a ten-run first inning on Saturday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Thunderbirds came up short against the Red Raiders, falling 13-3.
Iola-Scandinavia saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Charlotte Isermann, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one run.
Almond-Bancroft came out on top against Rosholt on Monday thanks in part to the team's impressive 12-run second inning. The Eagles' pitcher stepped up to hand the Hornets a 15-0 shutout. The result was nothing new for the Eagles, who have now won 15 games by nine runs or more so far this season.
Riya Ceballos made a splash while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). Ceballos was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 2-for-2 with three RBI, two runs, and one double. She is on a roll when it comes to RBI, as she's now brought in three or more in each of the last three games she's played.
In other batting news, Almond-Bancroft let Mya Dernbach and Aaliyah Newby run wild. Dernbach went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one double, while Newby went 2-for-3 with four RBI, two runs, and one stolen base. That's the most RBI Newby has posted since back in April. Lexi Carlton was another key player, going 1-for-2 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Almond-Bancroft always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .724. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Almond-Bancroft pushed their record up to 19-6 with the win, which was their sixth straight on the road. Those road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.8 runs on average over those games. As for Iola-Scandinavia, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost five of their last six matches. That's put a noticeable dent in their 10-12 record this season.
Iola-Scandinavia couldn't quite finish off Almond-Bancroft in their previous meeting back in May of 2024 and fell 4-2. Can the Thunderbirds avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
