The Waterloo Bulldogs will look to defend their home field on Monday against the Jersey Panthers at 4:30 p.m. Both teams come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Waterloo can now show off 11 landslide victories after their most recent matchup on Friday. Everything went their way against Mascoutah as Waterloo made off with a 14-4 win.
Mia Miller spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered four earned runs on nine hits and racked up eight Ks. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in 17 consecutive pitching appearances.
On the hitting side, Raelyn Melching was a standout: she got on base in all four of her plate appearances with a home run, three RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Kate Lindhorst, who went 2-for-4 with four RBI and a triple.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Jersey, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Thursday. They narrowly escaped with a victory as the team sidled past Roxana 6-4.
Ashlyn Brown made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over seven innings while giving up four earned runs off six hits (and not a single walk). Brown was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with an RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Maleah Derrick, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 4-for-4. Caroline Ward was another key contributor, going 2-for-3 with two RBI.
Waterloo is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine games, which lines up perfectly with their 21-6 record this season. As for Jersey, they pushed their record up to 7-14 with that win, which was their third straight at home.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Waterloo has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.1 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Jersey struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.4. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Waterloo beat Jersey 6-2 in their previous meeting back in April. Will Waterloo repeat their success, or does Jersey have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
