Cary-Grove and Prairie Ridge are an even 5-5 against one another since May of 2019, but likely not for long. The Cary-Grove Trojans will be playing in front of their home fans against the Prairie Ridge Wolves at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Cary-Grove will be strutting in after a win while Prairie Ridge will be coming in after a loss.
Cary-Grove took a loss when they played away from home on Monday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They had just enough and edged Jacobs out 7-6.
Ethan Dorchies tossed a big game, striking out seven batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Hayden Dieschbourg, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 4-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of PJ Weaver, who scored two runs while going 2-for-5.
Meanwhile, Prairie Ridge fell victim to Huntley and their airtight pitching crew on Wednesday. They took a 3-0 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Red Raiders. Prairie Ridge has not had much luck with Huntley recently, as the team's come up short the last eight times they've met.
Danny Savas was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched six innings while giving up three earned runs off six hits.
On the hitting side, Prairie Ridge saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Karson Stiefer, who went 1-for-2 with a double.
The victory got Cary-Grove back to even at 8-8. As for Prairie Ridge, their defeat dropped their record down to an identical 8-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Cary-Grove has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Prairie Ridge struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.7. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Cary-Grove skirted past Prairie Ridge 1-0 in their previous matchup back in May of 2023. Will Cary-Grove repeat their success, or does Prairie Ridge have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
