Baseball Recap: Hillsboro's Losing Streak Is a Thing of the Past

There's no place like home for Hillsboro, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Friday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 2-1 win over the Litchfield Purple Panthers on Tuesday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Hiltoppers have posted against the Purple Panthers since May 10, 2022.

Nathan Matoush

Batters Struck Out

05/13/25 vs Litchfield	16
05/09/25 @ Carlinville	5
04/29/25 vs North Mac	14
04/18/25 vs Vandalia	18
04/11/25 vs Southwestern	16
+ 3 more games

Nathan Matoush spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered a run (which was unearned) on one hit and racked up 16 Ks. With that strong performance, he is now averaging an impressive 5.1 strikeouts per game.

At the plate, Hillsboro saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Clayton Rufus, who went 1-for-2 with one run.

Hillsboro moved to 3-17 with that win, which also ended their five-game losing streak. As for Litchfield, their loss dropped their record down to 20-11.

Hillsboro didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next match, a 9-4 defeat against Gillespie on the 14th. As for Litchfield, they also wasted no time getting back out on the field and have already played their next game, a 9-2 loss against Columbia on the 14th.