The Casey-Westfield Warriors will face off against the Deer Creek-Mackinaw Chiefs at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday. The two teams are strolling into their contests after big wins in their previous games.
Deer Creek-Mackinaw will be up against a hot Casey-Westfield team: the squad just extended their winning streak to five. The Warriors never let Danville get on the board and left with a 6-0 victory on Thursday. Considering the Warriors have won 20 matchups by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Ava Goble was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out seven over six innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Lucy Moore, who went 3-for-4 with one triple, one double, and one RBI. Gabriela Frye was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs and two doubles.
Casey-Westfield kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least ten hits in eight consecutive games.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Deer Creek-Mackinaw, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Princeville on Friday as they made off with a 15-0 win. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last four times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Addyson Carithers was a standout: she went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, three RBI, and two runs. Those two stolen bases gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Mackenzie Knowles, who went 1-for-2 with four RBI, one triple, and one run.
Deer Creek-Mackinaw's victory was their seventh straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-8. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.3 runs on average over those games. As for Casey-Westfield, their victory bumped their record up to 24-3.
Saturday's contest will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Casey-Westfield hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .452. However, it's not like Deer Creek-Mackinaw struggles in that department as they've averaged .348. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Casey-Westfield came out on top in a nail-biter against Deer Creek-Mackinaw in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, sneaking past 3-1. Do the Warriors have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Chiefs turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
