Baseball Game Preview: Marquette Catholic Explorers vs. Columbia Eagles

The Marquette Catholic Explorers will head out to challenge the Columbia Eagles at 4:30 p.m. on Monday. The last three games Marquette Catholic has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.

On Thursday, Marquette Catholic sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 7-6 victory over Civic Memorial.

Keller Jacobs was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Jacobs was also solid in the batter's box, earning two runs and one stolen base.

In other pitching news, Drew Zacha tossed a big game, striking out eight batters over six innings while giving up three earned (and three unearned) runs off six hits.

Back at the plate, Will Fahnestock was incredible, going 1-for-2 with two runs, one triple, and two RBI.

Meanwhile, Columbia owes their pitching crew a big pat on the back after their performance on Friday. They narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past Belleville East 2-0. The Eagles haven't had any issues with the Lancers recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.

Marquette Catholic has been performing well recently as they've won five of their last six contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-5 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.8 runs over those games. As for Columbia, the victory got them back to even at 7-7.

Marquette Catholic couldn't quite finish off Columbia in their previous matchup back in April of 2024 and fell 5-3. Can the Explorers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.