vs
| 03/18/25 - Home | 11-1 W |
| 04/18/24 - Away | 20-0 W |
| 03/26/24 - Home | 27-2 W |
| 04/20/23 - Home | 17-1 W |
| 03/20/23 - Away | 25-4 W |
| + 3 more games |
North Johnston is a perfect 8-0 against Spring Creek since March of 2016 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Panthers will take on the Gators at 6:30 p.m. North Johnston's pitching crew has only allowed 2.8 runs per game this season, so Spring Creek's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
North Johnston is probably headed into the contest with a chip on their shoulder considering Princeton just ended the team's six-game winning streak on Tuesday. They fell just short of the Bulldogs by a score of 3-2. Having soared to a lofty 34 runs in the game before, the Panthers couldn't push the score so high this time.
North Johnston saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Charlie Barnes, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one RBI.
Meanwhile, it may have taken ten innings to finish the job, but Spring Creek ultimately got the result they hoped for on Tuesday. They had just enough and edged out Beddingfield 9-8. The victory was some much needed relief for the Gators as it spelled an end to their five-game losing streak.
Braden Bell and Jayson Hill were a major factor no matter where they played. On the mound, Bell tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Meanwhile, Hill didn't allow a single earned run while striking out ten over 5.2 innings pitched. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March of 2024. At bat, Bell scored four runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-6, while Hill got on base in four of his six plate appearances with one RBI. Spring Creek is undefeated when Bell posts two or more runs, but 0-5 otherwise.
Spring Creek's win was their first in the conference, bumping their conference record up to 1-3 and their overall record up to 3-5. As for North Johnston, their loss was their first in the conference, dropping their conference record down to 3-1 and their overall record down to 8-4.
Spring Creek's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: North Johnston has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 8.9 hits per game. It's a different story for Spring Creek, though, as they've been averaging 8.8 hits. Given North Johnston's sizable advantage in that area, the Gators will need to find a way to close that gap.
North Johnston took their victory against Spring Creek in their previous matchup two weeks ago by a conclusive 11-1 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Panthers since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
