The Effingham Hearts are taking a road trip to face off against the Highland Bulldogs at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.
Effingham is headed into the match having just suffered their biggest defeat since May 9, 2024 on Friday. They came up short against St. Anthony, falling 8-2. The Hearts have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Meanwhile, it may have taken ten innings to finish the job, but Highland ultimately got the result they hoped for on Monday. They walked away with an 8-4 victory over Belleville West. Surprisingly, this marked the Bulldogs' fifth straight game in which the away team has come away the victor.
Nolan Houchins looked comfortable as he pitched four innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Blaise Hawkins, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Chase Knebel, who got on base in three of his six plate appearances with one RBI.
Highland's record now sits at 16-12. As for Effingham, their loss dropped their record down to 18-9.
Effingham couldn't quite get it done against Highland in their previous meeting back in May of 2024 as they fell 5-0. Can the Hearts avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
