The Tri-Valley Vikings will square off against the Tolono Unity Rockets at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Tri-Valley is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Monticello as they made off with a 13-7 victory. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Vikings considering their one-run performance the contest before.
Aubrey Holmes looked comfortable as she pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Tri-Valley got a massive performance out of Zoey Whittaker, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and one double. Addie Phillips also deserves some recognition as she launched her first home run of the season.
Meanwhile, Tolono Unity waltzed into their match on Wednesday with ten straight wins... but they left with 11. They never let the Trojans get on the board and left with a 12-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Rockets, who have now won 19 games by eight runs or more so far this season.
Lindy Bates made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit over four innings pitched. Bates was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one home run and three RBI.
In other pitching news, Danika Eisenmenger looked comfortable as she tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit.
Back at the plate, Kenley Harris and Grace Bickers did most of the damage at the plate: Harris went 2-for-3 with one home run and three RBI, while Bickers went 2-for-3 with one home run and three RBI. Those three RBI gave Harris a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Shelby Smith, who went 2-for-3 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Tolono Unity's record now sits at 30-4. As for Tri-Valley, they moved to 21-7-1 with that victory, which also ended their three-game losing streak.
Tri-Valley might still be hurting after the 12-2 defeat they got from Tolono Unity in their previous matchup on May 3rd. Can the Vikings avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
