The Yellow Medicine East Sting will venture away from home to challenge the Renville County West Jaguars at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the contest bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Yellow Medicine East will bounce into Thursday's match after beating Tracy-Milroy-Balaton, who they had gone 0-9 against in their nine prior meetings. The Sting skirted past the Panthers 3-1. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Sting have posted since May 16, 2024.
Bayli Sneller
| 05/06/25 vs Tracy-Milroy-Balaton | 8 |
| 05/05/25 @ Russell-Tyler-Ruthton | 8 |
| 05/01/25 vs Lakeview | 10 |
| 04/29/25 vs MACCRAY | 10 |
| 04/25/25 @ Minnewaska Area | 7 |
| + 3 more games |
Bayli Sneller spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered a run (which was unearned) on three hits and racked up eight Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts any time she's pitched this season.
Meanwhile, Renville County West won against Dawson-Boyd on Monday with 11 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. The Jaguars were the clear victors by an 11-0 margin over Ortonville. The result was nothing new for the Jaguars, who have now won three games by seven runs or more so far this season.
Mackenna Hinderks was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out ten over five innings pitched. Hinderks was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with three runs and one double. That's the most runs she has posted since back in April of 2024.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Maddy Engstrom, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with three runs and two RBI. Those RBI marked the first that she has brought in this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Abigail Bratsch, who went 1-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Renville County West always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .514. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
The victory made it two in a row for Renville County West and bumps their season record up to 4-6. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Yellow Medicine East, the victory got them back to even at 4-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Yellow Medicine East has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Renville County West struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.1 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.
