The Lowell Red Devils will head out on the road to challenge the Illiana Christian Vikings at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Lowell will be looking to extend their current four-game winning streak.
While Lowell didn't have the best season last year (they finished 11-16-1), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They blew past Griffith 15-3 on Thursday. Considering the Red Devils have won six games by more than six runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Chris Hartmeyer looked comfortable as he tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit.
Lowell was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .556. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .360 or higher in four consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Illiana Christian fought the good fight in their extra-innings matchup against Hobart on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Brickies by a score of 3-2. Having soared to a lofty 14 runs in the game before, the Vikings couldn't push the score so high this time.
Matt Tameling was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he tossed five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits.
At the plate, Illiana Christian saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Spencer Bandstra, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one run. Hudson Post also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Lowell's victory bumped their record up to 6-2. As for Illiana Christian, the defeat snapped their winning streak at three games and leaves them with a 4-2 record.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Lowell has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Illiana Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 2.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Lowell came out on top in a nail-biter against Illiana Christian when the teams last played back in April of 2025, sneaking past 1-0. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Red Devils since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
