The Illiana Christian Vikings will venture away from home to take on the Munster Mustangs at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Illiana Christian's pitching crew has only allowed 2.1 runs per game this season, so Munster's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
While Illiana Christian's win against Andrean wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Vikings sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 5-4 victory over the Fighting 59ers on Friday. The win continues a trend for the Vikings in their matchups with the Fighting 59ers: they've now won three in a row.
Illiana Christian's victory was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jake Scott, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two RBI and one run.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last contest, Munster made sure to put some runs up on the board against Kankakee Valley on Tuesday. The Mustangs were the clear victors by a 10-0 margin over the Kougars. Considering the Mustangs have won nine matchups by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Munster also got a great performance from Owen Roberts as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out nine over five innings pitched. Those nine strikeouts gave Roberts a new career-high.
At the plate, Zach Wright was incredible, going 1-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Mason Jarrett, who got on base in two of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.
The win made it two in a row for Munster and bumps their season record up to 15-11. The victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered a grand total of 1 runs in those games. As for Illiana Christian, their record is now 18-4.
Wednesday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Illiana Christian hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .339. However, it's not like Munster struggles in that department as they've averaged .343. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Illiana Christian skirted past Munster 6-4 when the teams last played back in May of 2023. Will the Vikings repeat their success, or do the Mustangs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
