The Northwestern Tigers will face off against the Logansport Berries at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Northwestern comes in on three and Logansport on 12.
Northwestern proved they can win big on Wednesday (they won by 15) and on Thursday they proved they can win the close ones too. They won by a run and slipped past Argos 2-1.
Stevie-Rae Hedges spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on four hits and racked up 16 Ks.
On the hitting side, Northwestern saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Maci Rody, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one triple. Karma Kitner also deserves some recognition as she scored her first run of the season.
Logansport came out on top against Cathedral on Friday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run second inning. The Berries sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-4 victory over the Fighting Irish.
Logansport also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Gracie Risley gave up three earned (and one unearned) runs on six hits. Risley has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Natalee Packard was excellent, getting on base in all four of her plate appearances with one run and one double. Another player making a difference was Lucy Gordon, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with two runs.
Logansport's win was their seventh straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 23-4. Those road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.4 runs on average over those games. As for Northwestern, their win bumped their record up to 10-14.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Northwestern has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.4 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Logansport struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Northwestern couldn't quite finish off Logansport in their previous matchup last Thursday and fell 3-1. Can the Tigers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
