Baseball Game Preview: Tolono Unity Rockets vs. Prairie Central Hawks

The Tolono Unity Rockets will head out to challenge the Prairie Central Hawks at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Tolono Unity is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.8 runs per game this season.

Tolono Unity was handed a heart-breaking two-run defeat in their last matchup, but they sure didn't let that happen against Bloomington Central Catholic on Monday. The Rockets put the hurt on the Saints with a sharp 7-1 victory. The Rockets haven't had any issues with the Saints recently, as the game was their third consecutive win against them.

Emmerson Bailey

Hits (Career)

04/21/25 vs Bloomington Central Catholic	3
04/14/25 vs Paxton-Buckley-Loda	2
04/12/25 @ Carterville	2
04/08/25 vs Okaw Valley	2
04/03/25 @ Olympia	2

Emmerson Bailey was incredible, going 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, two RBI, and one run. Those three hits gave him a new career-high. Nolan Remole was another key player, going 3-for-4 with one stolen base and two RBI.

Streator hit Prairie Central with a four-run second inning on Thursday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Hawks lost 8-2 to the Bulldogs. The Hawks have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Prairie Central saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Chase Simpkins, who went 1-for-2 with two RBI.

Tolono Unity's victory bumped their record up to 10-7. As for Prairie Central, their loss dropped their record down to 5-13.

Prairie Central's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Tolono Unity hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .319. It's a different story for Prairie Central, though, as they've only averaged .248. Will they be able to contain Tolono Unity's hitters?

Everything went Tolono Unity's way against Prairie Central in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, as Tolono Unity made off with an 8-0 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Rockets since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.