Baseball Recap: Dixon Comes Up Short

Dixon had lost three straight on the road, but on Tuesday they dropped their record down to 12-9 to make it four. They fell just short of the Lutheran Crusaders by a score of 9-7. The Dukes & Duchesses were not able to make up for their loss to the Crusaders from their previous meeting back in May of 2024.

Jake Whelan

Runs

04/19/25 @ Winnebago	3
03/27/25 vs Jefferson	3
05/13/25 @ Lutheran	2
04/15/25 vs Winnebago	2
04/14/25 vs Rockford Christian	2
+ 6 more games

Jake Whelan made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double. He has become a key player for Dixon: the team is 5-1 when he posts at least two runs, but 7-8 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Eli Kirchoff, who got on base in two of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.

As for Lutheran, they are on a roll lately: they've won 11 of their last 12 contests. That's provided a massive bump to their 15-8 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.0 runs over those games.

On Lutheran's side, Jake Guse and Nate Ling made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Guse struck out ten batters over 5.1 innings while giving up just two earned (and three unearned) runs off four hits. Meanwhile, Ling pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Those ten strikeouts gave Guse a new career-high. At the plate, Guse went 1-for-4 with two RBI, one run, and one double, while Ling got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs.

In other batting news, Mason Villafuerte was incredible, going 2-for-4 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in April. Gaven Metcalf was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.

Coming up, Lutheran will take on Winnebago at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Dixon will be paying especially close attention to the Crusaders' matchup: after the Crusaders face off against the Indians, they'll take on Dixon again at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday.