The Central Catholic Vikings are taking a road trip to square off against the Butler Golden Tornado at 5:30 p.m. on Monday. Central Catholic is coming into the matchup on a three-game losing streak.
Central Catholic fell victim to North Allegheny and their airtight pitching crew on Thursday. They came up short against the Tigers, falling 11-0. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Vikings have suffered since April 22, 2025.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Butler and Pine-Richland meet (three straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Thursday. The Golden Tornado walked away with a 6-1 win over the Rams. That's two games straight that the Golden Tornado have won by exactly five runs.
Kyle Casteel looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run over four innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run any time he's pitched this season.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Jacob Szbalskie, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI, one run, and one double. Those three RBI gave him a new career-high. Mason Cuffman also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen base of the season.
Butler is on a roll lately: they've won eight of their last ten games. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-3 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.9 runs on average over those games. As for Central Catholic, they now have a losing record of 6-7.
Central Catholic's speedy runners might be the difference in Monday's contest. The Vikings have been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.3 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Butler, though, as they've been averaging only 1.1 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Central Catholic continue to outrun the ball?
Central Catholic came up short against Butler in their previous matchup back in April of 2025, falling 5-2. Can the Vikings avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
