Softball Preview: Jersey Panthers vs. Belleville East Lancers
Jersey is 2-7 against Belleville East since April of 2017 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. The Jersey Panthers will be playing at home against the Belleville East Lancers at 11:00 a.m. The pair have allowed few runs on average, (Jersey: 3.6, Belleville East: 2.8) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Jersey fought the good fight in their extra-innings game against Mascoutah on Wednesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Indians by a score of 8-7. Jersey's loss continues an unfortunate trend for the squad, making it three in a row.
Ashlyn Brown spent all 7.2 innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned (and five unearned) runs on eight hits and racked up 11 Ks. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts every time she's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Emily Collins was cooking despite her team's loss, going 4-for-4 with a triple, two RBI, and a run. The team also got some help courtesy of Anna Kribs, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-4.
Even though they lost, Jersey didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with 11 strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Mascoutah only tossed six.
Meanwhile, Belleville East can now show off eight landslide victories after their most recent contest on Wednesday. They never let Mt. Vernon onto the board and left with a 10-0 victory. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for Belleville East considering their one-run performance the matchup before.
Jersey's defeat dropped their record down to 5-7. As for Belleville East, their win bumped their record up to 14-7.
Jersey suffered a grim 10-0 defeat to Belleville East when the teams last played back in April of 2023. Will Jersey have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
