Baseball Game Preview: Howell North Knights vs. Parkway South Patriots

The Howell North Knights will head out to take on the Parkway South Patriots at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. The squads are rolling into the game with opposing streaks: Howell North has struggled recently with four losses in a row, while Parkway South will arrive with five straight victories.

On Wednesday, Howell North didn't have quite enough to beat Howell and fell 3-2. That's two games in a row now that the Knights have lost by just one run.

Meanwhile, Parkway South sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 7-6 win over Parkway Central on Thursday.

Parker Wolf tossed a big game, striking out six batters over 6.1 innings while giving up three earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks any time he's pitched this season.

On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on August Johansen, who went 3-for-4 with two runs, two doubles, and one triple. Those two doubles gave him a new career-high. Eli Andert also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.

Parkway South kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least ten hits in three consecutive matches.

Parkway South's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-5. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.7 runs over those games. As for Howell North, their defeat dropped their record down to 10-8.

Howell North might still be hurting after the 8-1 loss they got from Parkway South in their previous meeting back in May of 2024. Can the Knights avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.