Hoffman Estates is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Monday. They will host the Rolling Meadows Mustangs at 4:45 p.m. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Hoffman Estates took an 11-run defeat the last time they faced off against Hersey, but this time they managed to keep it close and that made all the difference. The Hawks sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-2 win over the Huskies on Friday. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Hawks.
Joaquin Carrasquillo and Niko Belesiotis made a big impact no matter where they played. Throwing, Carrasquillo tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off five hits. Meanwhile, Belesiotis didn't allow a single earned run over four innings pitched. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (five). At the plate, Carrasquillo got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI, while Belesiotis went 2-for-3 with one run.
Meanwhile, Rolling Meadows got themselves on the board against Zion-Benton on Saturday, but Zion-Benton never followed suit. They won by a run and slipped past the Zee-Bees 1-0. The Mustangs haven't had any issues with the Zee-Bees recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive victory against them.
The result came thanks to Tyler Stankiewicz's shutout, as he gave up just three hits and racked up six Ks. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up a single earned run in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Rolling Meadows secured the win behind a pair of hitters. One of them was Josh Rappa, who went 1-for-3 with one double.
Rolling Meadows' victory bumped their record up to 8-2. As for Hoffman Estates, the win got them back to even at 6-6.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Hoffman Estates has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Rolling Meadows struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Hoffman Estates came up short against Rolling Meadows in their previous matchup back in April of 2025, falling 10-6. Can the Hawks avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
