The Arcola Purple Riders will take on the Villa Grove Blue Devils at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Arcola has a tough task ahead: they'll enter the matchup with four straight losses, while Villa Grove will come in with six straight victories.
Tri-County [Kansas/Shiloh/Oakland] hit Arcola with a four-run seventh inning on Thursday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Purple Riders might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 5-4 to the Titans, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior.
Analia Cooper made the most of her time in the batter's box despite the final result and got on base in two of her four plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Jolena King, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI and one run.
Meanwhile, Villa Grove beat Fisher 9-5 on Thursday.
Piper Kiser made a big impact no matter where she played. She pitched four innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
In other batting news, Villa Grove let Isabella Dodd and Hayden Thomas run wild. Dodd went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI, while Thomas went 2-for-4 with three runs, one triple, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Ella Schweighart, who went 3-for-4 with three RBI, one run, and one double.
Villa Grove 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 12 hits in five consecutive games.
Villa Grove's win bumped their record up to 15-11. As for Arcola, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-17.
Arcola skirted past Villa Grove 11-10 when the teams last played back in May of 2025. Do the Purple Riders have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Blue Devils turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
