The Chester Yellowjackets will head out on the road to face off against the Murphysboro Red Devils at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Chester took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They had just enough and edged out Carlyle 3-1. The game snapped a strange streak: the last four times these teams have met, it?s been the away team that?s taken home the W.
Chester's win was truly a team effort as six different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Kolton Jany, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one RBI.
Meanwhile, Murphysboro beat Johnston City 7-2 on Thursday. The Red Devils haven't had any issues with the Indians recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.
Nathan Evans looked comfortable as he tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Murphysboro is 5-1 when Evans allows one or fewer earned runs, but 7-13 otherwise.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Gage Taylor, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base. He has become a key player for Murphysboro: the team is 7-3 when he posts at least two runs, but 5-11 otherwise.
Murphysboro pushed their record up to 12-14 with the win, which was their third straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.3 runs on average over those games. As for Chester, their record is now 11-12.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Chester has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Murphysboro struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Chester couldn't quite finish off Murphysboro when the teams last played back in May of 2024 and fell 4-2. Can the Yellowjackets avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
