The Bloomington Purple Raiders will head out on the road to take on the Galesburg Silver Streaks at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Bloomington has six straight victories, Galesburg has 37 straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Bloomington is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by a 21-4 margin over Peoria on Thursday. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest win of the season.
Reilly Vetter
| 05/15/25 @ Peoria | 3 |
| 03/28/25 vs Kankakee | 2 |
| 03/17/25 @ Limestone | 2 |
| 05/12/25 vs Mt. Zion | 1 |
| 05/09/25 @ Centennial | 1 |
Mady McComas and Reilly Vetter made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, McComas struck out nine batters over three innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off only two hits. Meanwhile, Vetter tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. She has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances. At bat, McComas went 1-for-3 with three runs and one RBI, while Vetter got on base in two of her four plate appearances with three runs. Those three runs gave Vetter a new career-high.
In other batting news, Mara Copes was a standout: she went a perfect 3-for-3 with four runs, three RBI, and one triple. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in April. Another player making a difference was Lauren Shuey, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with three stolen bases, four RBI, and two runs.
Bloomington 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 nine hits in four consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Thursday just wasn't the day for Galesburg's offense. They lost 17-0 to Rock Island on Thursday.
Bloomington's victory was their sixth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 15-3. Those road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.2 runs over those games. As for Galesburg, their loss dropped their record down to 0-32.
Everything went Bloomington's way against Galesburg in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, as Bloomington made off with a 9-1 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Purple Raiders since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
