The Staunton Bulldogs will be staying on the road on Friday to face off against the Southwestern Piasa Birds at 4:30 p.m. Both teams come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Staunton is headed into the matchup fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on East Alton-Wood River with a sharp 18-2 win on Wednesday. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.
Drake Billings made a splash no matter where he played. He tossed four innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off six hits. Billings has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive pitching appearances. Billings was even better at the plate, going 2-for-3 with five RBI and a run.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Dillon Pritchett, who scored four runs and stole two bases while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Ethan Sharp, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.
Meanwhile, Southwestern entered their tilt with Gillespie with three consecutive wins but they'll enter their next game with four. They beat the Miners on Tuesday by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 5-4.
Marcus Payne spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered three earned (and one unearned) runs on six hits and racked up six Ks.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Colin LeMarr, who went 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBI.
Staunton's win ended a three-game drought on the road and puts them at 6-15. As for Southwestern, they are on a roll lately: they've won five of their last six games, which provided a nice bump to their 15-4 record this season.
Staunton suffered a grim 9-0 defeat to Southwestern in their previous meeting back in April of 2023. Can Staunton avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
