Libertyville has gone a perfect 10-0 against Zion-Benton recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Monday. The Wildcats will square off against the Zee-Bees at 4:45 p.m. Libertyville will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Libertyville and Highland Park meet (four straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Saturday. The Wildcats' pitchers stepped up to hand the Giants a 1-0 shutout. Give the Wildcats' pitching crew some credit: that's the team's third straight shutout.
Charlie Gretz
| 05/03/25 @ Highland Park | 4 |
| 04/22/25 vs Mundelein | 0 |
| 04/19/25 @ St. Charles North | 1 |
| 04/14/25 vs Lake Zurich | 1 |
| 04/11/25 vs Elk Grove | 3 |
| + 9 more games |
Charlie Gretz and Nico Harper dominated on the mound. Gretz pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits, while Harper pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits. What's more, Gretz posted four strikeouts, the most he's had since back in April of 2024.
On the hitting side, Libertyville saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ryan Wilberding, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one run.
Zion-Benton came out on top against Vernon Hills on Saturday thanks in part to the team's impressive four-run second inning. The Zee-Bees narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past the Cougars 7-5. The game was the first time the Zee-Bees have beaten the Cougars on their field since May 12, 2016.
The team relied heavily on Brayden Duran, who went 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBI. Zion-Benton is 3-1 when Duran posts two or more runs, but 3-15 otherwise. The team also got some help courtesy of Michael Gonzalez, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two RBI.
Libertyville pushed their record up to 21-2 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.0 runs on average over those games. As for Zion-Benton, their record now sits at 6-16.
Zion-Benton's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Libertyville hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .316. It's a different story for Zion-Benton, though, as they've only averaged .217. Will they be able to contain Libertyville's hitters?
Everything went Libertyville's way against Zion-Benton in their previous meeting back in May of 2024, as Libertyville made off with a 10-0 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Wildcats since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
