Softball Game Preview: Grafton Bearcats vs. Parkersburg South Patriots

Grafton is 0-3 against Parkersburg South since March of 2019 but things could change on Saturday. Grafton will look to defend their home field against Parkersburg South at 12:00 p.m. After the two teams made easy work of their previous opponents, one won't be so lucky on Saturday.

Grafton is looking to give their home crowd another W after opening their season at home on Thursday. Everything went their way against East Fairmont as Grafton made off with a 12-5 victory. The win continues a trend for the Bearcats in their matchups with the Bees: they've now won four in a row.

Lillie Crimm was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She struck out 17 batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned (and three unearned) runs off four hits. That's the most strikeouts she has posted since back in April of 2024. She was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with three RBI and two doubles.

Chelsea Mauller

Hits (Career)

03/20/25 vs East Fairmont	3
05/02/24 vs Berkeley Springs	2
04/29/24 vs Frankfort	2
04/23/24 @ Fairmont Senior	2
04/20/24 @ Berkeley Springs	2

In other batting news, Chelsea Mauller was excellent, going 3-for-4 with three RBI and one double. Those three hits gave her a new career-high. Gracie Poling was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing a base.

Meanwhile, while Parkersburg South put up some runs on Friday, the same can't be said for Morgantown. Parkersburg South was the clear victor by a 10-0 margin over Morgantown. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Patriots.

The team relied heavily on Brooklin Whitehead, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with one home run and two runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Kailey Lockhart, who scored two runs while going 3-for-3.

Parkersburg South always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .577. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Morgantown only posted an OBP of .167.

Grafton suffered a grim 12-4 defeat to Parkersburg South in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. Will Grafton have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other softball content.