Baseball Game Preview: Cedar Crest Falcons vs. Central York Panthers

The Cedar Crest Falcons will face off against the Central York Panthers at 4:15 p.m. on Monday. Cedar Crest has now lost eight straight, leaving the team hunting for their first win since April 17.

Cedar Crest might be feeling deja-vu: they lost 7-2 to Manheim Township, which was the same score (and result) they got the week prior.

Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Central York, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Spring Grove on Wednesday, sneaking past 5-3. The victory continues a trend for the Panthers in their matchups with the Rockets: they've now won four in a row.

Jacob Laughman made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has become a key player for Central York: the team is 2-1 when he allows at most three hits, but 7-9 otherwise. Laughman was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with four RBI, one triple, and one run. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high.

Laughman wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Luke Burch, who went 1-for-3 with two runs and one stolen base. Burch is becoming a predictor of Central York's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 6-10 when he doesn't).

Central York's win bumped their record up to 9-10. As for Cedar Crest, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-14.

Cedar Crest was able to grind out a solid victory over Central York when the teams last played back in March of 2024, winning 8-4. Do the Falcons have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Panthers turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.