The Bennington Badgers will take on the Blair Bears at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Bennington had to skate by with only a one-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the nine-run drubbing they dealt Nebraska City on Monday. The Badgers put the hurt on the Pioneers with a sharp 12-3 win. The Badgers haven't had any issues with the Pioneers recently, as the game was their ninth consecutive victory against them.
Dominic Mendicino and Dominic Driggs dominated on the mound. Mendicino pitched five innings while giving up three earned runs off six hits, while Driggs tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits.
On the hitting side, Brayden Kloster and Colby Dean did most of the damage at the plate: Kloster went 4-for-5 with three RBI and one run, while Dean went 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. That stolen base marked the first that Dean has snagged this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Brendon Da Luz, who went 1-for-3 with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
Bennington always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .585. The last time their OBP was this high was back in April of 2025.
Meanwhile, Blair got the win against Aurora on Saturday by a conclusive 19-12.
Josh Stephenson was incredible, firing off four doubles, five RBI, and two runs while going 4-for-4. Brevin Leggott was another key player, going 2-for-5 with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI.
Bennington's record is now 4-0. As for Blair, their record now sits at 3-0.
Blair's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Bennington has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 10.5 hits per game. It's a different story for Blair, though, as they've been averaging 8.7 hits. Given Bennington's sizable advantage in that area, the Bears will need to find a way to close that gap.
Bennington came out on top in a nail-biter against Blair in their previous matchup back in March of 2025, sneaking past 6-4. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Badgers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
