The Casey-Westfield Warriors will take on the Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond Knights at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Casey-Westfield's pitching crew has only allowed 3.9 runs per game this season, so Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Casey-Westfield took a loss when they played away from home on Thursday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Neoga a 10-0 shutout. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Warriors considering their two-run performance the match before.
Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond came out on top against Villa Grove on Thursday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run seventh inning. The Knights took their game against the Blue Devils 7-3. The Knights haven't had any issues with the Blue Devils recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive win against them.
Maxton Boddy made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over seven innings pitched. He also tossed a walk, which is notable because Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond is 2-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 5-6 otherwise. Boddy was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 4-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run. Those four hits gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, John Williams was excellent, going 3-for-4 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in May of 2024. Marcus Otto was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs and one double.
Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. They are a perfect 6-0 when they post 11 or more hits.
Casey-Westfield pushed their record up to 9-8 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.0 runs over those games. As for Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond, the victory got them back to even at 7-7.
Casey-Westfield was able to grind out a solid win over Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond in their previous matchup back in April of 2024, winning 5-2. Will the Warriors repeat their success, or do the Knights have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
