Effingham is 3-0 against Richland County since April of 2021, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Monday. The Effingham Flaming Hearts will head out on the road to face off against the Richland County Tigers at 4:30 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Effingham will bounce into Monday's contest after beating St. Anthony, who they hadn't topped in nine consecutive meetings. Effingham was the clear victor by a 14-8 margin over St. Anthony on Friday. Effingham's victory was all the more impressive since St. Anthony was averaging only 2.8 runs allowed on the season.
Sidney Donaldson was incredible, going 2-for-4 with a home run, three runs, and four RBI. Madi Kirk was another key contributor, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, everything went Richland County's way against Oblong on Saturday as Richland County made off with a 14-1 win. The victory made it back-to-back wins for Richland County.
Kaiya Seessengood made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she tossed three innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits. Seessengood was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while going 3-for-4.
In other pitching news, Marissa Mclaren looked comfortable as she pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits.
Back at the plate, Rylee Bloomer was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was Bailey Rennier, who scored a run while going 2-for-4.
Effingham pushed their record up to 20-8 with that victory, which was their third straight on the road. As for Richland County, their record is now 13-10.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Monday. Effingham hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.8 home runs per game. However, it's not like Richland County struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.4. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Effingham skirted past Richland County 2-1 in their previous meeting back in May of 2023. The rematch might be a little tougher for Effingham since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
