The Eastern Musketeers will square off against the North Harrison Cougars at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
On Monday, Eastern came up short against Lanesville and fell 6-3. The loss continues a trend for the Musketeers in their meetings with the Eagles: they've now lost eight in a row.
Eastern saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Sidney Patton, who went 1-for-2 with two runs.
Meanwhile, North Harrison came tearing into Monday's game with five straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 5.8 runs), and they left with even more momentum. Everything went their way against the Pioneers as they made off with an 11-2 victory. With that win, the Cougars brought their scoring average up to 6.2 runs per game.
Bayley Myrick made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off five hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBI and one double. That's the most hits she has posted since back in April of 2024.
In other batting news, North Harrison let Gabby White and London Wheeler run wild. White went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI, while Wheeler went 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Kendal Maher, who went 1-for-4 with two runs and one RBI.
North Harrison kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least 12 hits in three consecutive matches.
North Harrison's victory was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-5. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.2 runs on average over those games. As for Eastern, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Eastern has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like North Harrison struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Eastern couldn't quite get it done against North Harrison in their previous meeting back in May of 2024 as they fell 6-2. Will the Musketeers have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more softball content.
