The Jersey Panthers will head out on the road to challenge the Waterloo Bulldogs at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Jersey is no doubt hoping to put an end to a four-game streak of away losses.
On Friday, Jersey sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-4 victory over Roxana.
Ashlyn Brown made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up four earned runs off six hits (and not a single walk). Brown has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in 19 consecutive pitching appearances. Brown was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with an RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Maleah Derrick, who scored three runs and stole two bases while going 4-for-4. Another player making a difference was Caroline Ward, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI.
Meanwhile, Waterloo put the finishing touches on their 11th blowout victory of the season on Friday. Everything went their way against Mascoutah as Waterloo made off with a 14-4 win.
Mia Miller spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered four earned runs on nine hits and racked up eight Ks.
At the plate, Raelyn Melching was a standout: she got on base in all four of her plate appearances with a home run, three RBI, and two runs. Kate Lindhorst was another key contributor, going 2-for-4 with four RBI and a triple.
Jersey has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four contests, which provided a nice bump to their 7-14 record this season. As for Waterloo, their record now sits at 21-6.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Jersey has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Waterloo struggles in that department as they've been averaging 10.1. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Jersey came up short against Waterloo in their previous matchup back in April, falling 6-2. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Miller, who struck out 13 batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits (and not a single walk). Now that Jersey knows the damage she can cause, will they be able to stop her this time? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
