Softball Game Preview: Belleville West Maroons vs. Mt. Vernon Rams

The Belleville West Maroons will head out on the road to take on the Mt. Vernon Rams at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday. Mt. Vernon took a loss in their last match and will be looking to turn the tables on Belleville West, who comes in off a win.

Belleville West took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They came out on top against Murphysboro by a score of 7-4.

Kara Kramer

Batters Struck Out

05/09/25 vs Murphysboro	7
05/07/25 @ Freeburg	4
05/06/25 @ Edwardsville	4
05/01/25 vs Collinsville	7
04/29/25 @ O'Fallon	3
+ 6 more games

Kara Kramer spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered four earned runs on five hits and racked up seven Ks. With that strong performance, she is now averaging an impressive 5.1 strikeouts per game.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Caleigh Dashner, who went 3-for-4 with two triples and two runs. Those two triples gave her a new career-high.

Meanwhile, Mt. Vernon was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their third straight loss. They were a single run away from ending the streak, but they lost a 4-3 heartbreaker at the hands of Triad. That's two games in a row now that the Rams have lost by just one run.

Mia Porter was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-2 with two RBI and one double.

The victory got Belleville West back to even at 11-11. As for Mt. Vernon, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-8.