The Tuscola Warriors will square off against the Meridian Hawks at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Tuscola comes in on seven and Meridian on three.
Tuscola barely beat Clinton the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Warriors blew past the Maroons 10-2 on Wednesday.
Kinzie Cleland
| 04/30/25 @ Clinton | 3 |
| 04/29/25 vs Neoga | 2 |
| 04/23/25 @ Shelbyville | 2 |
| 04/21/25 @ Central A & M | 2 |
| 03/31/25 @ Argenta-Oreana | 2 |
Kinzie Cleland made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She struck out nine batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned runs off five hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than nine strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with four RBI and one double. Those three hits gave her a new career-high.
In other batting news, Ava Boyer and Allison Pettry did most of the damage at the plate: Boyer went 1-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI, while Pettry went 2-for-4 with two runs and one triple. That's the most runs Pettry has posted since back in April. Another player making a difference was Bella Wishard, who went 1-for-4 with one triple and two RBI.
Tuscola kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in four consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Meridian made easy work of Warrensburg-Latham on Wednesday and carried off an 11-1 victory. The Hawks might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won ten matchups by eight runs or more this season.
Ashley Schelling spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on four hits.
On the hitting side, Meridian let Emma Childers and Julia Meisenhelter run wild. Childers went 2-for-3 with four RBI, one triple, and one run, while Meisenhelter went 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and one stolen base. Katelyn Clapp was another key player, going 2-for-3 with three RBI and one run.
Meridian pushed their record up to 17-3 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.5 runs over those games. As for Tuscola, their win bumped their record up to 11-6.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Tuscola hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like Meridian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.4 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Tuscola might still be hurting after the 15-0 loss they got from Meridian in their previous matchup back in April. Will the Warriors have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
