The Lincoln-Way Central Knights will head out on the road to square off against the Downers Grove South Mustangs at 4:45 p.m. on Monday. Lincoln-Way Central is coming into the game hot, having won their last 15 games.
Lincoln-Way Central is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Illinois' top teams: Bradley-Bourbonnais, who was ranked 24th at the time (Lincoln-Way Central was ranked first). The Knights came out on top in a nail-biter against the Boilermakers on Friday, sneaking past 3-1.
The team relied heavily on Kayla Doerre, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, two RBI, and one double.
Lincoln-Way Central was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .389. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .364 or higher in three consecutive matchups.
Glenbard West hit Downers Grove South with a four-run third inning on Saturday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Mustangs took a 7-3 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Hilltoppers.
Victoria Colorato was cooking despite her team's loss, going 2-for-3 with two RBI, one run, and one double. Gabby Ruchniewicz was another key player, going 3-for-4 with one double.
Lincoln-Way Central pushed their record up to 26-1 with the victory, which was their 18th straight at home dating back to last season. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.4 runs over those games. As for Downers Grove South, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost five of their last six contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 11-14 record this season.
Downers Grove South's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Monday. Lincoln-Way Central has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 12.4 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Downers Grove South, though, as they've been averaging only 4.2 strikeouts. Will Lincoln-Way Central keep running through batters, or will the Mustangs buck the trend? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
