Baseball Game Preview: North Hopkins Panthers vs. Cooper Bulldogs

The North Hopkins Panthers will square off against the Cooper Bulldogs at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. North Hopkins' pitching crew has only allowed 2.2 runs per game this season, so Cooper's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

North Hopkins fought the good fight in their extra-innings contest against Wolfe City on Friday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They came up short against the Wolves, falling 14-2. The Panthers' defeat signaled the end of their seven-game winning streak.

Meanwhile, Cooper won against Wolfe City last Friday with ten runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. Cooper blew past Celeste 10-3. Considering the Bulldogs have won six matches by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.

Jaret Slakey made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He struck out 12 batters over six innings while giving up three earned runs off six hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than nine strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with one home run, two stolen bases, and two runs. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in March of 2024.

In other batting news, Karter Randle was a standout: he scored two runs and stole three bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in March of 2024. Another player making a difference was Brayden Williams, who scored two runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-4.

North Hopkins' loss was their first in the district, dropping their district record down to 5-1 and their overall record down to 15-3. As for Cooper, the win (which was their third in a row) raised their record to 9-4.

North Hopkins couldn't quite get it done against Cooper in their previous meeting back in February of 2024 as they fell 6-2. Will North Hopkins have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.