vs
| 04/25/24 - Home | 6-1 W |
| 04/27/23 - Away | 11-9 W |
| 05/12/22 - Home | 11-1 W |
| 05/11/21 - Away | 29-13 W |
| 04/25/19 - Away | 14-4 W |
| + 5 more games |
Normal Community has gone a perfect 10-0 against Danville recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Ironmen will square off against the Vikings at 4:30 p.m. Normal Community is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last five games.
If Normal Community beats Danville with six runs on Thursday, it's going to be the squad's new lucky number: they've won their past two games with that exact score. The Ironmen beat Mahomet-Seymour on Tuesday by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 6-1.
Avery Anderson spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on five hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Tatum Yokley, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI. Maggie Kelley also deserves some recognition as she brought in her first RBI of the season.
Normal Community hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They are a perfect 4-0 when they post two or more strikeouts.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Danville). They never let Peoria get on the board and left with a 21-0 victory on Wednesday. The team's explosion at the plate also rewarded the Vikings with their most commanding win of the season.
Deana Linares was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out eight over four innings pitched. Linares was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in all four of her plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one double.
In other batting news, Payton Beith was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with three RBI, two runs, and two doubles. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in April of 2024. Kealee Alyea was another key player, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with four runs.
Normal Community's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-9. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.0 runs on average over those games. As for Danville, their win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 8-8.
Normal Community was able to grind out a solid victory over Danville in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, winning 6-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Ironmen since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
