Calhoun hasn't had much luck against Southwestern recently, but that could start to change on Saturday. The Warriors will be playing in front of their home fans against the Piasa Birds at 10:00 a.m. Calhoun is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
While Calhoun didn't have the best season last year (they finished 9-18), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. They came out on top against Pawnee by a score of 4-1 on Friday. The four-run effort marked the Warriors' lowest-scoring game of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Trevor Rose spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on four hits.
On the hitting side, Drew Wallendorf was incredible, going 2-for-4 with one home run, one stolen base, and two RBI. That home run marked the first that he launched this season.
Meanwhile, Southwestern had to endure a six-game losing streak, but that streak is no more. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Hillsboro a 2-0 shutout on Friday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Piasa Birds have posted since May 15, 2024.
Southwestern saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Ian Brantley, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and one RBI.
Calhoun pushed their record up to 8-0 with the win, which was their fifth straight on the road dating back to last season. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.4 runs on average over those games. As for Southwestern, their win bumped their record up to 3-7.
Southwestern's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Calhoun has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.4 hits per game. It's a different story for Southwestern, though, as they've been averaging 9.9 hits. Given Calhoun's sizable advantage in that area, the Piasa Birds will need to find a way to close that gap.
Calhoun came out on top in a nail-biter against Southwestern in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, sneaking past 1-0. Do the Warriors have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Piasa Birds turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
