vs
| 04/13/24 - Away | 19-1 W |
| 04/15/23 - Home | 11-7 W |
| 04/28/22 - Away | 8-4 W |
| 04/26/18 - Away | 25-0 W |
| 04/17/17 - Home | 5-0 W |
| 04/17/15 - Home | 14-3 W |
Southwestern has gone a perfect 6-0 against Metro-East Lutheran recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Wednesday. The Piasa Birds will be playing at home against the Knights at 4:30 p.m. Southwestern is coming into the match hot, having won their last ten games.
Southwestern proved they can win big last Tuesday (they won by seven) and on Tuesday they proved they can win the close ones too. They narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Pana 6-5.
Grace Strohbeck spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned (and two unearned) runs on eight hits and racked up six Ks.
On the hitting side, Vivian Zurheide was incredible, going 3-for-4 with three RBI, two doubles, and one stolen base. That's the most doubles she has posted since back in April of 2024. Sydney Valdes was another key player, going 3-for-4 with three runs.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Metro-East Lutheran, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Thursday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Cahokia a 15-0 shutout on Monday. The victory continues a trend for the Knights in their matchups with the Comanches: they've now won seven in a row.
Alexis Weber was a major factor no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, keeping things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out nine over four innings pitched. She has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with three runs and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Keira Fischer, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with two runs.
Metro-East Lutheran always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .593. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post an OBP of .513 or better.
Southwestern pushed their record up to 12-3-1 with the win, which was their sixth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Metro-East Lutheran, their win bumped their record up to 4-8.
Metro-East Lutheran's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Southwestern hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .368. It's a different story for Metro-East Lutheran, though, as they've only averaged .243. Will they be able to contain Southwestern's hitters?
Southwestern took their victory against Metro-East Lutheran when the teams last played back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 19-1 score. Will the Piasa Birds repeat their success, or do the Knights have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
