The Beardstown Tigers will square off against the Illini West Chargers at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Last Wednesday, it was close, but Beardstown sidestepped Macomb for a 5-4 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Tigers.
Shelby Goodrich
| 04/09/25 vs Macomb | 1 |
| 04/03/25 @ Pleasant Plains | 0 |
| 03/29/25 vs Cuba/Spoon River Valley | 1 |
| 03/26/25 @ Seymour | 1 |
Shelby Goodrich spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned (and one unearned) runs on eight hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Kylynn Maltby, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Vanessa Nu?ez, who went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, one double, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Illini West, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Wednesday. They skirted past Camp Point Central 5-4. The Chargers haven't had any issues with the Panthers recently, as the game was their third consecutive win against them.
Illini West also let their pitcher toss all seven innings and she was also dialed-in: Hattie Wood gave up just two earned (and two unearned) runs on eight hits.
On the hitting side, Ella Shutwell was excellent, scoring two runs and stealing three bases while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. That's the most runs she has posted over her last ten contests. Corin Robinson was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
Illini West pushed their record up to 5-9 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.7 runs on average over those games. As for Beardstown, their victory bumped their record up to 5-3.
