Braves
| 05/10/25 vs Charleston | 6 |
| 05/10/25 vs Charleston | 1 |
| 05/08/25 vs Lincoln | 10 |
| 05/07/25 @ Tolono Unity | 1 |
| 05/06/25 vs Argenta-Oreana | 11 |
| + 21 more games |
The Mt. Zion Braves will head out on the road to challenge the Bloomington Purple Raiders at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Mt. Zion is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.9 runs per game this season.
Mt. Zion couldn't beat Charleston on Saturday even though they stacked four runs on them in the fifth inning. The Braves fell just short of the Trojans by a score of 7-6. Braves fans who chose to attend the game sure picked the wrong one: it was the first time the team's lost against the Trojans since on Saturday.
Addy Rotz was cooking despite her team's loss, going 2-for-3 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs.
Meanwhile, Bloomington came tearing into Friday's contest with three straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 3.7 runs), and they left with even more momentum. They put the hurt on the Chargers with a sharp 12-0 victory. Considering the Purple Raiders have won five matchups by more than five runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Reilly Vetter made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out 13 over five innings pitched. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't tossed less than nine strikeouts any time she's pitched this season. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one run and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Alicia Swank, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI. Those two stolen bases gave her a new career-high. Abi Witt was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
Bloomington pushed their record up to 13-3 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Mt. Zion, their defeat ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 18-8.
Bloomington's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Mt. Zion has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .447. It's a different story for Bloomington, though, as they've only averaged .343. Will they be able to contain Mt. Zion's hitters?
Mt. Zion came out on top in a nail-biter against Bloomington in their previous meeting back in May of 2024, sneaking past 3-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Braves since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
