Blooming Prairie is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Thursday. They will square off against the Medford Tigers at 4:30 p.m. Blooming Prairie will come into the game with an undefeated record on the line.
Blooming Prairie is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They blew past Kenyon-Wanamingo 15-5 on Tuesday. The result was nothing new for the Awesome Blossoms, who have now won three matchups by eight runs or more so far this season.
Carsten Ingvalson made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over 3.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits (and only one walk). He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up a single earned run in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring four runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
In other batting news, Alex Lea was incredible, going 3-for-5 with three stolen bases, three runs, and four RBI. Elliot Gimbel also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Blooming Prairie was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .378. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Medford fell victim to Randolph and their airtight pitching crew on Monday. They came up short against the Rockets, falling 13-0. The Tigers haven't had much luck with the Rockets recently, as the team has come up short the last four times they've met.
Blooming Prairie's win was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-0. Those road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they've averaged 11.2 runs this season. As for Medford, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-3.
Medford's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Thursday. Blooming Prairie has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.8 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Medford, though, as they've been averaging only 3.5 strikeouts. Will Blooming Prairie keep running through batters, or will the Tigers buck the trend?
Everything went Blooming Prairie's way against Medford when the teams last played back in May of 2024, as Blooming Prairie made off with an 11-5 win. Do the Awesome Blossoms have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Tigers turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
