Baseball Game Preview: Wheeling Wildcats vs. Conant Cougars

The Wheeling Wildcats will square off against the Conant Cougars at 4:45 p.m. on Monday. Wheeling will be strutting in after a victory while Conant will be coming in after a defeat.

Wheeling took a 15-run loss the last time they faced off against Barrington, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Wildcats came out on top in a nail-biter against the Fillies/Broncos on Friday, sneaking past 5-4. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Wildcats have posted since April 26th.

Meanwhile, Conant was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their fourth straight defeat. They lost 10-4 to Buffalo Grove.

Jacob Szpiganowicz was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-3 with one home run and three RBI. He has become a key player for Conant: the team is 3-1 when he posts at least three RBI, but 9-17-1 otherwise. Arjun Patel was another key player, getting on base in all three of his plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.

Wheeling's victory ended a ten-game drought on the road and puts them at 11-18. As for Conant, their loss dropped their record down to 12-18-1.

Wheeling skirted past Conant 5-4 in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Will the Wildcats repeat their success, or do the Cougars have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.