North Mac lost against Southwestern back in April of 2023, and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Thursday. The North Mac Panthers took a 5-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Southwestern Piasa Birds. The defeat continues a trend for North Mac in their matchups with Southwestern: they've now lost four in a row.
Taylor Keirs was huge no matter where she played even without the win. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off ten hits (and only one walk). Keirs has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive pitching appearances. Keirs was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 2-for-3.
Keirs wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Karleigh Prose, who went 1-for-3 with a stolen base.
On Southwestern's side, Grace Strohbeck spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on five hits and racked up eight Ks.
At the plate, Southwestern let Josie Hagen and Ella Kadell loose on the outfield. Hagen went 4-for-4 with a stolen base and two RBI, while Kadell went 2-for-4 with a home run. The team also got some help courtesy of Abby McDonald, who scored a run while going 1-for-4.
North Mac's loss dropped their record down to 13-11. As for Southwestern, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won three of their last four matches, which provided a massive bump to their 15-10-2 record this season.
North Mac will head out on the road to challenge Pittsfield at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. As for Southwestern, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Carlinville at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The last five games Carlinville has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
