Clifton Central was the 20-8 winner over Illinois Lutheran when they last played one another last Tuesday, but their luck changed this time around. The Clifton Central Comets took an 11-8 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Illinois Lutheran Chargers on Thursday. Clifton Central has now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Ella Ponton was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-3 with three stolen bases and two RBI. Blair Bottorff was another key contributor, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 1-for-3.
On Illinois Lutheran's side, Kailey Van Es made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up five earned (and three unearned) runs off five hits. Van Es was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while going 1-for-4.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Calleigh Garrett, who scored three runs while going 3-for-4. Another player making a difference was Madison Permenter, who scored three runs while going 3-for-3.
Clifton Central's defeat dropped their record down to 8-10. As for Illinois Lutheran, the victory was the third in a row for them, bringing their record for this year to 6-6.
Clifton Central will be playing in front of their home fans against Grace Christian Academy at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Clifton Central is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.5 runs per game this season. As for Illinois Lutheran, they will head out on the road to challenge Michigan Lutheran at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
