SEOUL, South Korea (Interstat) — The KT Wiz visit the Kiwoom Heroes on Friday evening at Gocheok Sky Dome in a matchup of teams heading in opposite directions.

KT (29-20-1) enters the game riding high after an 11-3 rout of the Doosan Bears on Thursday. The Wiz have won three of their last four and sit atop the league standings. Kiwoom (20-31-1), meanwhile, has lost four straight and is mired in the bottom half of the table.

A key figure in KT’s recent surge is outfielder Sam Hilliard. The left fielder went 4-for-6 with a home run and four RBIs in Thursday’s victory, matching a career high for runs driven in. Over his last 10 games, Hilliard is batting .367 (11-for-30) with two homers and eight RBIs, and he has hit safely in seven of those contests.

The Heroes will counter with left-hander Kenny Rosenberg. The pitcher has been effective but inconsistent. In his most recent start Thursday against Kia, Rosenberg allowed three earned runs on nine hits over five innings, striking out five in a 5-0 loss. On May 22 against LG, he tossed four scoreless innings with six strikeouts in a 7-0 win.

The season series has been competitive. Kiwoom won the most recent meeting 5-1 on May 10, but the Wiz took the game before that 8-0 on May 8. Overall, KT holds a 3-2-1 edge in six head-to-head contests this season.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 4-3 victory for the Wiz, and the ELO system gives KT a 64.4% probability of winning.

Following Friday’s game, the teams will meet again Saturday and Sunday to complete the three-game series.