vs
| 04/09/19 - Away | 13-2 W |
| 04/08/19 - Home | 10-5 W |
| 04/06/19 - Away | 5-4 W |
| 04/09/15 - Away | 0-9 L |
| 04/08/15 - Home | 3-14 L |
| 04/07/15 - Away | 0-9 L |
West Aurora and Bartlett are an even 3-3 against one another since April of 2015, but likely not for long. The Blackhawks will welcome the Hawks at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. West Aurora will be looking to extend their current nine-game winning streak.
While West Aurora didn't have the best season last year (they finished 12-19), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They blew past West Chicago 11-1 on Wednesday. The result was nothing new for the Blackhawks, who have now won eight contests by seven runs or more so far this season.
Henry Hinkle made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run over five innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up a single earned run in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going a perfect 1-for-1 with three RBI and one double. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March.
In other batting news, Oscar Alexander Jr. was incredible, going 1-for-2 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Jake Niedzwiedz, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
West Aurora was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .385. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as West Chicago only posted a batting average of .182.
Meanwhile, Bartlett unfortunately witnessed the end of their four-game winning streak on Saturday. They fell 8-4 to St. Francis.
Bartlett saw seven different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Vince Yario, who went 2-for-3 with one double and one RBI. Gio Scivittaro was another, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with one stolen base and one run.
West Aurora pushed their record up to 11-1 with the victory, which was their fourth straight at home. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Bartlett, their defeat dropped their record down to 7-9-1.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. West Aurora has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Bartlett struggles in that department as they've been averaging 9.9 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
West Aurora took their victory against Bartlett in their previous matchup back in April of 2019 by a conclusive 13-2 score. Will the Blackhawks repeat their success, or do the Hawks have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
