The Arthur-Okaw Christian Conquering Riders will head out on the road to face off against the Argenta-Oreana Bombers at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Arthur-Okaw Christian is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.2 runs per game this season.
Thursday just wasn't the day for Arthur-Okaw Christian's offense. They fell 3-0 to Mattoon on Thursday. The match marked the first time this year in which the Conquering Riders were not able to get on the board.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Argenta-Oreana, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. Everything went their way against Villa Grove on Thursday as they made off with a 16-3 victory. Considering the Bombers have won 11 games by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Elyssa Armstrong made a splash while hitting and pitching. She struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off five hits. Armstrong was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with four RBI, two runs, and one double.
In other batting news, Argenta-Oreana got a big performance out of Pyper Jones, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Gracie Manning, who went 1-for-4 with two stolen bases and three runs.
Argenta-Oreana was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .517. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Villa Grove only posted a batting average of .238.
Argenta-Oreana has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 13-11 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.1 runs over those games. As for Arthur-Okaw Christian, with the loss, they broke their three-game winning streak and moved their record to 5-4.
Wednesday's match will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Arthur-Okaw Christian hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .326. However, it's not like Argenta-Oreana struggles in that department as they've averaged .339. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
