vs
| 03/20/24 - Home | 3-2 W |
| 05/15/21 - Away | 8-1 W |
| 03/21/18 - Home | 16-8 W |
| 03/22/17 - Away | 10-8 W |
| 05/07/16 - Neutral | 11-4 W |
| 03/23/16 - Home | 15-5 W |
Meridian has gone a perfect 6-0 against Monticello recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Wednesday. Meridian will challenge Monticello at 4:30 p.m. Both teams are still undefeated (Meridian has three wins , while Monticello has nine dating back to last season).
Meridian proved they can win big on Saturday (they won by 13) and on Tuesday they proved they can win the close ones too. They narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Argenta-Oreana 3-1. Surprisingly, this marked the fifth straight game that the away team has come away the victor.
Ashley Schelling spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on three hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one walk any time she's pitched this season.
On the hitting side, Shelby Renfro was incredible, going 2-for-4 with one home run and one stolen base. Another player making a difference was Layla Lucas, who scored a run while going 2-for-2.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Monticello). Their pitcher stepped up to hand Tuscola a 17-0 shutout on Tuesday. The team's explosion at the plate also rewarded the Sages with their most commanding win of the season.
Cassidee Stoffel was a major factor no matter where she played. She didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out 11 over four innings pitched. That's the most strikeouts she has posted since back in April of 2024. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with one home run, six RBI, and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Isabella Beery, who fired off two home runs, three RBI, and one double while going 3-for-4. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March of 2024. Sadie Walsh also deserves some recognition as she brought in her first RBI of the season.
Monticello was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .517. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .304 or higher every time they've taken the field this season.
Meridian's record now sits at 3-0. As for Monticello, their record is now 4-0.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Meridian has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Monticello struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Meridian skirted past Monticello 3-2 when the teams last played back in March of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for Meridian since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
