The Murphysboro Red Devils will head out on the road to challenge the Salem Wildcats at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Having struggled with eight losses in a row, Murphysboro turned things around against Nashville on Wednesday. They were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over the Hornets. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Red Devils considering their two-run performance the game before.
Blaire Fox made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out seven batters over six innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. Fox was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Macey Alexander
| 04/09/25 vs Nashville | 4 |
| 03/19/25 vs Vienna | 2 |
| 03/16/24 vs Graves County | 2 |
| 03/13/24 @ Vienna | 2 |
| 03/11/24 vs Triad | 2 |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Macey Alexander, who got on base in four of her five plate appearances with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Those four RBI gave her a new career-high. Macie Cunningham also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
Murphysboro always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .595. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Salem faced off against Breese Central on Thursday. The Wildcats' pitcher stepped up to hand the Cougars a 9-0 shutout. The result was nothing new for the Wildcats, who have now won three matches by nine runs or more so far this season.
Like Murphysboro, Salem also got a great game from a two-way player: Breanna Thurman. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out eight over 5.1 innings pitched. Thurman has been consistent : she hasn't given up more than one earned run in six consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, Jaelyn Keller was incredible, scoring two runs while going 3-for-3. Another player making a difference was Isabella Decker, who scored a run while going 2-for-3.
Salem has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-2 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Murphysboro, their record is now 3-9.
Murphysboro's speedy runners might be the difference in Friday's game. The Red Devils have been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.8 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Salem, though, as they've been averaging only 0.1 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Murphysboro continue to outrun the ball? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
