The Illini West Chargers will venture away from home to square off against the Beardstown Tigers at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Illini West was handed a six-run defeat in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Thursday. They narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Camp Point Central 5-4. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Chargers have posted since March 25th.
Hattie Wood spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and two unearned) runs on eight hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Ella Shutwell was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. With that strong performance, she is now averaging an impressive 1.1 stolen bases per game. Another player making a difference was Corin Robinson, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
Meanwhile, it was close, but on Wednesday Beardstown sidestepped Macomb for a 5-4 win.
Beardstown also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Shelby Goodrich gave up three earned (and one unearned) runs on eight hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Kylynn Maltby, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. Lauren Coats also deserves some recognition as she got her first hit of the season.
Illini West's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 5-9. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.0 runs over those games. As for Beardstown, their victory bumped their record up to 5-3.
Illini West came out on top in a nail-biter against Beardstown in their previous matchup back in March, sneaking past 4-3. Will the Chargers repeat their success, or do the Tigers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
