After five games on the road, Iroquois West is heading back home. They will take on the Hoopeston Cornjerkers at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Last Wednesday, Iroquois West earned a 5-1 victory over Watseka.
The team relied heavily on Dean Clendenen, who scored three runs and stole three bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Rylan Pheifer, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with a home run.
Meanwhile, Hoopeston had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 9 runs), and they went ahead and made it three on Tuesday. They had just enough and edged the Hawks out 8-7. Eight seems to be a good number for Hoopeston as the team scooped up a win with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Cole Miller was excellent, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and a double. Keygan Field was another key contributor, scoring a run while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Iroquois West's victory bumped their record up to 3-6. As for Hoopeston, their win was their fifth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 9-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Iroquois West has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 6.9 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Hoopeston struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Iroquois West came up short against Hoopeston when the teams last played back in April of 2023, falling 7-2. Will Iroquois West have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
