Baseball Game Preview: Jefferson West Tigers vs. Holton Wildcats

The Jefferson West Tigers will venture away from home to challenge the Holton Wildcats on Monday. Jefferson West's pitching crew has only allowed 3.1 runs per game this season, so Holton's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

While Jefferson West's win against Perry-Lecompton wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Tigers narrowly escaped with a victory as the squad sidled past the Kaws 7-6. The Tigers haven't had any issues with the Kaws recently, as the game was their sixth consecutive win against them.

Meanwhile, Holton gave up the first runs on Thursday, but they didn't let that get them down. They walked away with a 6-3 victory over Hiawatha. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Wildcats.

Cody Rodriguez spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned (and one unearned) runs on nine hits.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Jarett Abel, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Noah Bartel, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one run.

Jefferson West pushed their record up to 20-1 with the win, which was their 18th straight at home dating back to last season. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.9 runs on average over those games. As for Holton, their record is now 6-13-1.

Everything went Jefferson West's way against Holton in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, as Jefferson West made off with a 10-0 win. Do the Tigers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Wildcats turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.