Softball Preview: Murphysboro Red Devils vs. Salem Wildcats
The Murphysboro Red Devils will look to defend their home field on Thursday against the Salem Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. Murphysboro is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last five games.
In what's become a running theme this season, Murphysboro gave their fans yet another huge win on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Pinckneyville as Murphysboro made off with a 7-1 victory.
Ayla Smith was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run over seven innings pitched. Smith has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive pitching appearances. Smith was also big at the plate, scoring a run while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
In other batting news, Marteena Clover was excellent, going 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI. Ciara Fulmer was another key contributor, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Salem came up short against St. Anthony on Wednesday and fell 9-6.
Like Murphysboro, Salem also got a great game from a two-way player: Breanna Thurman. She struck out seven batters over six innings while giving up four earned (and two unearned) runs off nine hits (and only one walk). Thurman was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with a home run.
Thurman wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Lilly Blagoue, who fired off two home runs and three runs while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Marah Johnson, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Murphysboro's win was their seventh straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 15-4. As for Salem, their defeat dropped their record down to 13-4.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
