The Villa Grove Blue Devils are taking a road trip to square off against the Paris Tigers at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The two teams are strolling into their contests after big wins in their previous games.
Villa Grove will roll into the matchup after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up one run on Thursday, then bounced right back against Blue Ridge on Monday. The Blue Devils put the hurt on the Knights with a sharp 10-2 win. The Blue Devils haven't had any issues with the Knights recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive victory against them.
Piper Kiser made a splash no matter where she played. On the mound, she struck out ten batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off six hits. Kiser was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring four runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in four of her five plate appearances. What's more, she posted two home runs, the most she's had since back in May of 2024.
Hayden Thomas
| 04/07/25 @ Blue Ridge | 2 |
| 04/03/25 vs Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg | 1 |
| 04/01/25 vs Georgetown-Ridge Farm | 1 |
In other batting news, Villa Grove let Hayden Thomas and Olivia Jones run wild. Thomas scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-2, while Jones went 2-for-4 with four RBI, two doubles, and one run. Thomas has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times she's played. Izzy Dodd also deserves some recognition as she snagged her first stolen base of the season.
Villa Grove kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Blue Ridge only managed eight hits.
Meanwhile, Paris had to endure a three-game losing streak, but that streak is no more. Everything went their way against Martinsville on Tuesday as they made off with an 18-6 win. Considering the Tigers have won four games by more than ten runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Kayleigh Miller and Bailey Rhoads did most of the damage at the plate: Miller went 3-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs, while Rhoads went 3-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and one double. Another player making a difference was Morgan Coombes, who scored four runs while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances.
Villa Grove's record is now 4-2. As for Paris, the victory got them back to even at 5-5.
Paris' pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Villa Grove has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9 hits per game. It's a different story for Paris, though, as they've been averaging 8.9 hits. Given Villa Grove's sizable advantage in that area, the Tigers will need to find a way to close that gap.
Villa Grove suffered a grim 6-0 defeat to Paris in their previous meeting back in May of 2022. Can the Blue Devils avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
