The Rolling Meadows Mustangs will face off against the Payton College Prep Grizzlies at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. Rolling Meadows is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
Rolling Meadows' pitching crew heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They blew past Maine West 6-0. The result was nothing new for the Mustangs, who have now won three contests by six runs or more so far this season.
Luke Schneider
| 03/31/26 vs Maine West | 9 |
| 03/25/26 vs Waukegan | 7 |
| 04/17/25 @ Hoffman Estates | 7 |
| 03/31/25 @ Glenbard North | 6 |
| 03/20/26 vs Elmwood Park | 4 |
Luke Schneider made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out nine over four innings pitched. Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in two of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base. Schneider is crushing it when it comes to stolen bases: he's snagged at least one every time he's taken the field this season.
Schneider wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Tony Romanacce, who went 1-for-4 with two stolen bases and two runs. Romanacce is crushing it when it comes to stolen bases: he's snagged at least one every time he's taken the field this season. Josh Rappa was another, going 2-for-3 with one double.
Meanwhile, Payton College Prep hadn't done well against Niles West recently (they were 0-5 in their previous five matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Tuesday. The Grizzlies came out on top against the Wolves by a score of 5-1.
The team relied heavily on Max MacKenzie, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. That double was his first of the season. The team also got some help courtesy of Jarek Diaz, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one stolen base and one run.
Payton College Prep's win bumped their record up to 3-1-1. As for Rolling Meadows, their victory bumped their record up to 4-0.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Thursday as neither team is afraid to steal. Rolling Meadows has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Payton College Prep struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 3.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Rolling Meadows was able to grind out a solid win over Payton College Prep in their previous matchup back in April of 2025, winning 5-2. Do the Mustangs have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Grizzlies turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
