Baseball Game Preview: Illini West Chargers vs. Cuba/Spoon River Valley Wildcats

The Illini West Chargers will head out to challenge the Cuba/Spoon River Valley Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Illini West is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.6 runs per game this season.

Illini West easily dispatched Peoria Heights on Thursday, but unfortunately both the margin and the ultimate result were a different story in this one. The Chargers fell just short of Macomb by a score of 6-4 on Saturday. The home team had taken home the W every time these teams have met since April 27, 2023, but that streak is no more.

Illini West got a good showing from Jaydyn Combites, who pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. That's the fewest hits Combites has allowed since back in March.

At the plate, Nick Johnson made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs. Wesley Robertson was another key player, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with one stolen base and one RBI.

Meanwhile, Cuba/Spoon River Valley posted their closest victory since April 8, 2024 on Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 5-4 win over Havana. The Wildcats haven't had any issues with the Ducks recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.

Illini West's defeat ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 21-9. As for Cuba/Spoon River Valley, their win bumped their record up to 15-12.

Illini West came out on top in a nail-biter against Cuba/Spoon River Valley when the teams last played back in May of 2024, sneaking past 6-5. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Chargers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.