The Dunlap Eagles will face off against the Dixon Dukes & Duchesses at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Dunlap has eight straight victories, Dixon has ten straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
While Dunlap's win against Metamora wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Eagles narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past the Redbirds 6-4. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Eagles have posted since April 16th.
Carter Lippens
| 05/22/25 @ Metamora | 1 |
| 05/19/25 vs Metamora | 0 |
| 05/14/25 vs Morton | 2 |
Carter Lippens looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Christian Ferrari was excellent, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Eli Michanicou, who went 1-for-4 with three RBI.
Meanwhile, Dixon started off well but failed to capitalize on an early lead against Sterling. They fell just short of the Golden Warriors by a score of 3-2 on Friday.
Daniel Fordham was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he pitched 6.1 innings while giving up three earned runs off six hits. What's more, he gave up only zero walks, the fewest he's had since back in April.
At the plate, Dixon saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jake Whelan, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base.
Dunlap pushed their record up to 25-7 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Dixon, their defeat dropped their record down to 12-14.
Dixon's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Saturday. Dunlap has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Dixon, though, as they've been averaging only 3.8 strikeouts. Will Dunlap keep running through batters, or will the Dukes & Duchesses buck the trend?
Dunlap came out on top in a nail-biter against Dixon when the teams last played back in May of 2024, sneaking past 3-2. Do the Eagles have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Dukes & Duchesses turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
