The Murphysboro Red Devils will head out to challenge the Centralia Orphans at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The two teams each escaped (but just barely!) with wins against their previous opponents.
Murphysboro was handed a seven-run defeat in their previous outing, but that didn't affect their clutch gene on Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-5 win over O'Fallon.
Arianna Smith
| 05/10/25 vs O'Fallon | 6 |
| 03/17/25 vs Triad | 2 |
| 04/28/25 vs Carterville | 1 |
| 04/15/25 @ Carterville | 1 |
| 04/11/25 @ Salem | 1 |
Ayla Smith and Arianna Smith were major factors while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Smith pitched two innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. Meanwhile, Arianna struck out six batters over six innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off seven hits (and only one walk). Those six strikeouts gave her a new career-high. At the plate, Smith went 2-for-4 with two runs and one stolen base, while Arianna went 2-for-4 with one stolen base and one RBI.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Blaire Fox, who went 1-for-3 with one run and one double. Kylie Powell was another, going 1-for-3 with one run and one RBI.
Meanwhile, it may have taken eight innings to finish the job, but Centralia ultimately got the result they hoped for on Wednesday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Mt. Vernon, sneaking past 2-1. The Orphans haven't had any issues with the Rams recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.
Centralia's win was their eighth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 16-2. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.8 runs on average over those games. As for Murphysboro, their record is now 7-18.
Murphysboro took their win against Centralia in their previous matchup back in May of 2023 by a conclusive 15-5 score. Do the Red Devils have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Orphans turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
