The Woodstock North Thunder will square off against the Johnsburg Skyhawks at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Woodstock North sitting on three straight wins and Johnsburg on ten.
Woodstock North barely beat Plano the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Thunder blew past the Reapers 13-5 on Saturday. The Thunder might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three contests by eight runs or more this season.
Tristan Schaffter made a big impact no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching four innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off four hits. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four). He was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
Braeden Berner
| 04/12/25 vs Plano | 4 |
| 04/12/25 @ Plano | 3 |
| 04/08/25 vs Marengo | 2 |
| 04/04/25 @ Belvidere North | 2 |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Braeden Berner, who scored two runs and stole four bases while going 2-for-5. He has become a key player for Woodstock North: the team is 3-1 when he posts at least two stolen bases, but 2-3 otherwise. Another player making a difference was Jack Wollpert, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-3.
While Johnsburg didn't have the best season last year (they finished 6-25), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past. Everything went their way against Sandwich on Saturday as they made off with a 16-5 victory.
Like Woodstock North, Johnsburg also got a great game from a two-way player: Kaeden Frost. He tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Frost has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one hit in six consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one stolen base.
In other batting news, Dom Vallone was a standout: he got on base in four of his five plate appearances with three stolen bases, three runs, and three RBI. He is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last four games he's played. Riley Johnson was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing four bases while going 4-for-5.
Johnsburg always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .553. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Sandwich only posted an OBP of .364.
Johnsburg's win was their ninth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 11-2. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.8 runs over those games. As for Woodstock North, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Monday as neither team is afraid to steal. Woodstock North has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.1 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Johnsburg struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 5.7 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Woodstock North was able to grind out a solid win over Johnsburg when the teams last played back in April of 2024, winning 9-6. Do the Thunder have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Skyhawks turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
