The Herrin Tigers will venture away from home to challenge the Anna-Jonesboro Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Herrin barely beat DuQuoin the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Tigers' pitcher stepped up to hand the Indians a 12-0 shutout on Wednesday. The Tigers have beaten the Indians the last four times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Indians has come to flipping the script.
Brooke Hudgens
| 04/30/25 @ DuQuoin | 4 |
| 04/28/25 vs Harrisburg | 0 |
| 04/23/25 @ Benton | 3 |
| 04/21/25 vs Murphysboro | 3 |
| 04/16/25 @ Marion | 1 |
| 04/08/25 @ Murphysboro | 4 |
Brooke Hudgens tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only two hits over five innings pitched. What's more, she posted four strikeouts, the most she's had over her last six matches.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Ryleigh Coffey, who went 1-for-2 with three RBI, two runs, and one double. Those two runs gave her a new career-high. Madison Dickerson was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs and one RBI.
Herrin hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They are 3-1 when they post two or more strikeouts.
Crab Orchard typically has all the answers at home, but on Wednesday Anna-Jonesboro proved too difficult a challenge. They were the clear victors by a 10-0 margin over the Trojans. The result was nothing new for the Wildcats, who have now won 18 games by six runs or more so far this season.
Not much got past Ruby Yates, who gave up just five hits and racked up nine Ks to keep Crab Orchard off the board. Yates has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one walk in 17 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Anna-Jonesboro let Kansas Craig and Ariana Turner run wild. Craig went 4-for-5 with one home run, two runs, and one double, while Turner went 3-for-4 with one home run and four RBI. Another player making a difference was Jayda Shepard, who went 3-for-4 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
The victory made it two in a row for Anna-Jonesboro and bumps their season record up to 20-3. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered a grand total of 2 run in those games. As for Herrin, their victory bumped their record up to 10-11.
Both Herrin and Anna-Jonesboro just can't seem to miss. The Tigers have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 8.8 hits per game. However, it's not like Anna-Jonesboro struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 2.8 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Herrin suffered a grim 18-6 defeat to Anna-Jonesboro in their previous matchup back in March. Can the Tigers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
