Baseball Game Preview: North Laurel Jaguars vs. South Laurel Cardinals

An exciting North v. South battle is about to be fought. The North Laurel Jaguars will look to defend their home field on Thursday against the South Laurel Cardinals at 6:00 p.m.

On Monday, North Laurel didn't have quite enough to beat Jackson County and fell 5-4. The Jaguars have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Cam Hinkle was huge no matter where he played even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been consistent for a while: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in nine consecutive appearances. He was even better at the plate, going 2-for-5 with one home run, one stolen base, and two RBI. That home run was his first of the season.

In other batting news, Carter Kelley was cooking despite his team's loss, getting on base in four of his five plate appearances with one run.

Meanwhile, South Laurel entered their tilt with Corbin on Wednesday with three consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with four. They beat the Redhounds by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 8-4.

South Laurel's win bumped their record up to 17-4. As for North Laurel, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-11.

North Laurel beat South Laurel 8-3 when the teams last played back in May of 2024. Will the Jaguars repeat their success, or do the Cardinals have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.