Softball Game Preview: West Branch Warriors vs. Minerva Lions

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Previous Games

04/08/25 - Away	10-6 W
04/18/24 - Away	6-4 W
04/06/24 - Home	12-1 W
04/20/23 - Home	8-7 W
04/04/23 - Away	7-0 W
+ 5 more games

West Branch has gone 9-1 against Minerva recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Warriors will be playing at home against the Lions at 5:00 p.m. The timing is sure in West Branch's favor as the team sits on four straight wins at home while Minerva has been banged up by three consecutive losses on the road.

West Branch gave up the first runs on Tuesday, but they didn't let that get them down. They walked away with a 9-4 victory over Salem. The win continues a trend for the Warriors in their matchups with the Quakers: they've now won nine in a row.

Ellie Tucker and Klary McKay made a splash while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Tucker didn't allow a single earned run while striking out eight over five innings pitched. Meanwhile, McKay tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Tucker has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances. At the plate, Tucker went 2-for-3 with one RBI, while McKay went 1-for-4 with one home run. That home run marked the first that McKay has launched this season.

In other batting news, West Branch let Addi Craven and Libbie Davis run wild. Craven went 1-for-3 with three stolen bases, three runs, and one double, while Davis went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. That's the most RBI Davis has posted since back in March. Carly Loper was another key player, getting on base in two of her four plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Minerva fell victim to Beaver Local and their airtight pitching crew on Wednesday. They took a 4-0 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Beavers. The matchup marked the first time this year in which the Lions were not able to get on the board.

West Branch's victory bumped their record up to 10-3. As for Minerva, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-10.

West Branch was able to grind out a solid win over Minerva in their previous meeting on April 8th, winning 10-6. Will the Warriors repeat their success, or do the Lions have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.