Normal Community is a perfect 10-0 against Bloomington since May of 2018 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The Ironmen will welcome the Purple Raiders at 4:30 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Normal Community has 14 straight wins, Bloomington has four straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Normal Community is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Illinois' top teams: Normal University, who was ranked 14th at the time (Normal Community was ranked 18th). The Ironmen's pitchers stepped up to hand the Pioneers a 3-0 shutout on Tuesday. The Ironmen's pitching crew has been rock solid lately; the team hasn't given up a run in their last three games.
Gavin Swartz
| 05/12/26 vs Normal University | 5 |
| 04/25/26 vs Rock Island | 9 |
Gavin Swartz looked comfortable as he kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits over four innings pitched. What's more, he posted five strikeouts, the most he's had over his last two matchups.
On the hitting side, Drew Stevens was excellent, going 2-for-3 with two RBI, one run, and one double. That's the most RBI he has posted over his last eight contests. The team also got some help courtesy of Gavin Michaels, who went 1-for-2 with two runs and one stolen base.
Normal Community hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least two batters in three consecutive games.
Champaign Central hit Bloomington with a four-run fifth inning on Wednesday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Purple Raiders lost 12-2 to the Maroons.
Bloomington's defeat dropped their record down to 10-18. As for Normal Community, their victory bumped their record up to 27-2.
Bloomington's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Normal Community hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .369. It's a different story for Bloomington, though, as they've only averaged .227. Will they be able to contain Normal Community's hitters?
Everything went Normal Community's way against Bloomington when the teams last played back in May of 2025, as Normal Community made off with a 10-0 win. Will the Ironmen repeat their success, or do the Purple Raiders have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
