The Grand Forks Central Knights will take on the Hillsboro/Central Valley H-CV Burros at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Grand Forks Central will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each matchup than the last.
Grand Forks Central is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They came up short against Thompson on Friday, falling 16-10. The defeat continues a trend for the Knights in their meetings with the Tommies: they've now lost six in a row.
Taylor Herman made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in four of her five plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Ava Hensrud, who went 3-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Hillsboro/Central Valley, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Thursday. They came out on top against Red River by a score of 4-1 on Friday.
Kyah Chenault spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on nine hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Kailee Kittelson, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-3. That run marked the first that she scored this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Peyton Quam, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-3.
Hillsboro/Central Valley's win bumped their record up to 2-3. As for Grand Forks Central, their loss dropped their record down to 0-4.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Monday as neither team is afraid to steal. Grand Forks Central has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.8 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Hillsboro/Central Valley struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Grand Forks Central came out on top in a nail-biter against Hillsboro/Central Valley in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, sneaking past 10-9. Will the Knights repeat their success, or do the H-CV Burros have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
