The Gillespie Miners will head out on the road to square off against the Hillsboro Hiltoppers at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Gillespie will be looking to extend their current five-game winning streak.
On Friday, Gillespie was able to grind out a solid win over Litchfield, taking the game 9-4.
Paxton Reid spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and two unearned) runs on seven hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 14 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Laci Schuckenbrock was incredible, going a perfect 4-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Ava Parish, who went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI.
Gillespie was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .441. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Litchfield only posted a batting average of .233.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Hillsboro, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Monday. They put the hurt on Litchfield with a sharp 6-0 victory on Tuesday. The Hiltoppers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won six matches by six runs or more this season.
Not much got past Anika Camp, who gave up just a hit and racked up 12 Ks to keep Litchfield off the board.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Briley Kirby, who went 1-for-3 with three stolen bases, two runs, and one RBI. That's the most stolen bases she has posted since back in April of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Peyton Chappelear, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI, one run, and one double.
Gillespie's record is now 19-6. As for Hillsboro, their record now sits at 8-12.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Wednesday. Gillespie hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like Hillsboro struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.6 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Gillespie took their win against Hillsboro when the teams last played back in May of 2024 by a conclusive 9-0 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Miners since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
