Baseball Recap: Durand/Pecatonica Takes a Loss

Durand/Pecatonica extended their losing streak to eight on Thursday, dropping their season record down to 2-14 in the process. They came up short against the Pearl City Wolves, falling 15-1. Unfortunately, that's the second time they've come up short against the Wolves this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 15-8 on Tuesday.

As for Pearl City, they are on a roll lately: they've won six of their last eight matches. That's provided a massive bump to their 8-7 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.0 runs over those games.

For Pearl City's part, Brandon Hillie made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out seven over four innings pitched. Hillie has been consistent: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in eight consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with four RBI, one run, and one double. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kip Martens, who went 2-for-3 with three runs, one triple, and one double. He is becoming a predictor of Pearl City's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is 4-1 (and 4-6 when he doesn't). The team also got some help courtesy of Brycen Voegeli, who went 2-for-4 with three RBI and one double.

We've got plenty of inter-conference action coming up soon. Durand/Pecatonica will challenge rival Orangeville at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Meanwhile, Pearl City is set to square off against their familiar foe Dakota at 4:30 p.m. on Monday.