The Tippecanoe Red Devils are taking a road trip to face off against the Fairmont Firebirds at 5:00 p.m. on Friday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Tippecanoe has four straight victories, Fairmont has seven straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Tippecanoe is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. Everything went their way against Ponitz Career Tech on Wednesday as they made off with a 28-0 win. Considering the Red Devils have won 16 matches by more than five runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.
Cayden McKinney and Landon Muhlenkamp made a splash while hitting and pitching. Throwing, McKinney struck out six batters over two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). Meanwhile, Muhlenkamp pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. McKinney has been consistent for a while: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in ten consecutive appearances. At bat, McKinney went 1-for-3 with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI, while Muhlenkamp went a perfect 1-for-1 with two runs and two RBI. That's the most runs McKinney has posted since back in April.
In other batting news, Preston Zumwalt was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases, three runs, and two RBI. Noah Fox also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.
Tippecanoe always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .673. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, Fairmont didn't have quite enough to beat Troy on Wednesday and fell 8-7.
Skyler Slifer was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-4 with one home run and three runs. He has become a key player for Fairmont: the team is 4-1 when he posts at least two runs, but 9-15 otherwise. Dillon Johnson was another key player, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
Tippecanoe's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 22-3. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 19.0 runs over those games. As for Fairmont, their defeat dropped their record down to 13-16.
Fairmont's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Tippecanoe hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .361. It's a different story for Fairmont, though, as they've only averaged .245. Will they be able to contain Tippecanoe's hitters?
Tippecanoe came up short against Fairmont when the teams last played back in April of 2024, falling 5-0. Can the Red Devils avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
