vs
| 05/06/25 - Away | 3-4 L |
| 05/05/25 - Home | 1-3 L |
| 05/01/24 - Away | 7-5 W |
| 04/30/24 - Home | 7-3 W |
| 05/03/23 - Home | 7-4 W |
| + 5 more games |
Coal City and Reed-Custer are an even 5-5 against one another since April of 2021, but likely not for long. The Coalers will be playing in front of their home fans against the Comets at 4:33 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Reed-Custer will be up against a hot Coal City squad: the team just extended their winning streak to six. The Coalers' pitchers stepped up to hand Newark a 12-0 shutout on Monday.
Lance Cuddy was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances. He was even better at the plate, getting on base in all three of his plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April.
In other batting news, Coal City let Gavin Berger and Gabe McHugh run wild. Berger got on base in all three of his plate appearances with two runs and two RBI, while McHugh went 1-for-2 with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. That's the most runs McHugh has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Dylan Young, who went 1-for-2 with two RBI.
Coal City always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .636. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Newark only posted an OBP of .111.
Meanwhile, Reed-Custer entered their tilt with Prairie Central on Friday with two consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with three. They were the clear victors by a 16-1 margin over the Hawks. With that win, the Comets brought their scoring average up to 6.4 runs per game.
The team relied heavily on Brady Tyree, who fired off two home runs, five RBI, and three runs while going 2-for-2. Landen Robinson was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI.
Coal City pushed their record up to 22-11 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Reed-Custer, their victory bumped their record up to 18-12.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Thursday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Coal City has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Reed-Custer struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 6.8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
