Baseball Game Preview: Van Alstyne Panthers vs. Celina Bobcats

Van Alstyne hasn't had much luck against Celina recently, but that could start to change on Friday. A feisty cat fight will be fought as Van Alstyne Panthers face off against Celina Bobcats at 6:00 p.m. Van Alstyne's pitching crew has only allowed 3.1 runs per game this season, so Celina's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Van Alstyne is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to 12 runs on Wednesday, they were much more limited against Sanger on Tuesday. They fell just short of the Indians by a score of 3-2.

Landon Newkirk was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. He pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Newkirk was even better at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run, one stolen base, and two RBI.

In other pitching news, Hayden Bietz was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he didn't allow a single earned run over six innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.

Newkirk wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Kaden Barrett, who scored a run while going 1-for-2.

Meanwhile, Celina entered their tilt with Sanger on Friday with two consecutive wins , and they'll enter their next game with three. They walked away with a 7-2 victory over the Indians.

Celina's win was their ninth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 10-4-1. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.1 runs on average over those games. As for Van Alstyne, their loss was their first in the district, dropping their district record down to 2-1 and their overall record down to 7-5.

Van Alstyne might still be hurting after the 11-0 defeat they got from Celina in their previous meeting back in April of 2024. Can Van Alstyne avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.