Softball Game Preview: Effingham Hearts vs. Hillsboro Hiltoppers

The Effingham Hearts will square off against the Hillsboro Hiltoppers at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Effingham has three straight wins, Hillsboro has three straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.

Effingham's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Saturday. They had just enough and edged out Mahomet-Seymour 2-0. Those two runs were actually the fewest the Hearts have put up all season, but given the result they're probably not too concerned.

The result came thanks to Natalie Armstrong's shutout, as she gave up just four hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Effingham's victory was truly a team effort as two different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jerzi Bierman, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-3.

Meanwhile, Hillsboro suffered their biggest loss since March 22nd on Friday. They came up short against Southwestern, falling 20-4.

Briley Kirby made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored three runs while going 3-for-3.

Effingham now has a winning record of 5-4. As for Hillsboro, their defeat dropped their record down to 4-7.

Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Monday. Effingham hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 1.9 home runs per game. However, it's not like Hillsboro struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.7 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.

Effingham took their win against Hillsboro in their previous matchup back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 11-1 score. Will the Hearts repeat their success, or do the Hiltoppers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.