Slinger is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Monday. They will take on the Port Washington Pirates at 4:45 p.m.
Slinger is headed into the game having just suffered their closest loss since May 3, 2024 on Saturday. They fell just short of Oconomowoc by a score of 8-6. The Owls have struggled against the Raccoons recently, as the game was their seventh consecutive lost meeting.
Chase Leverance made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances. The team also got some help courtesy of Mason Johnson, who scored a run while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Port Washington). Everything went their way against Racine Lutheran/Prairie on Saturday as they made off with a 13-5 victory. The result was nothing new for the Pirates, who have now won three matches by eight runs or more so far this season.
Jack Bunyan made a big impact no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed two innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit. Bunyan was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.
In other pitching news, Sam Thompson looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit.
Back at the plate, Kyle Uselding was excellent, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 2-for-3. Jackson Dickson also deserves some recognition as he got his first hits of the season.
Port Washington was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .455. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
The win made it two in a row for Port Washington and bumps their season record up to 3-1. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.0 runs over those games. As for Slinger, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-1.
Everything went Slinger's way against Port Washington in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, as Slinger made off with an 8-1 win. Will the Owls repeat their success, or do the Pirates have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.