Kankakee Valley is 6-0 against Rensselaer Central since May of 2015, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Saturday. The Kankakee Valley Kougars will be staying on the road to face off against the Rensselaer Central Bombers at 10:00 a.m. Kankakee Valley is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.8 runs per game this season.
Kankakee Valley is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. Their pitcher stepped up to hand Culver Academies a 13-0 shutout. The result was nothing new for Kankakee Valley, who have now won nine matchups by nine runs or more so far this season.
Elyse Starr tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and only one hit while striking out six over five innings pitched. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Emily Erb, who went 2-for-2 with three RBI, two runs, and a triple. Julia Mahmet was another key contributor, scoring two runs while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Rensselaer Central was able to grind out a solid victory over Tippecanoe Valley on Thursday, taking the game 4-0.
The result came thanks to Kali Northcutt's shutout, as she gave up just three hits.
On the hitting side, Rensselaer Central's win was truly a team effort as six different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Stacia Crabtree, who went 1-for-3 with a home run. Another player making a difference was Brynn Hannon, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-4.
Kankakee Valley now has a winning record of 14-13. As for Rensselaer Central, they have been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 12-9 record this season.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Saturday. Kankakee Valley hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.5 home runs per game. However, it's not like Rensselaer Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.5. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Kankakee Valley took their victory against Rensselaer Central in their previous meeting back in May of 2023 by a conclusive 16-1. Will Kankakee Valley repeat their success, or does Rensselaer Central have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
