Baseball Game Preview: Neuqua Valley Wildcats vs. Naperville Central Redhawks

Neuqua Valley is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Monday. They will take on the Naperville Central Redhawks at 4:30 p.m. Neuqua Valley will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each contest than the last.

Neuqua Valley is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They walked away with a 9-4 victory over Wheaton Academy on Saturday.

Joe Barkley

Runs Batted In (Career)

04/12/25 @ Wheaton Academy	4
04/11/25 vs Lake Park	2
03/31/25 @ Plainfield South	1
03/28/25 vs Lyons	1
05/25/24 vs West Aurora	1

Neuqua Valley let Mike Langan and Joe Barkley run wild. Langan went 2-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and three runs, while Barkley went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run and four RBI. Those four RBI gave Barkley a new career-high. Andy Barkley was another key player, scoring two runs while going 1-for-3.

They weren't the only one making solid contact: Neuqua Valley kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least eight hits in three consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Naperville Central unfortunately witnessed the end of their three-game winning streak on Saturday. They fell 8-3 to Lockport.

Neuqua Valley picked up their first road win, bumping their record up to 2-5-1. As for Naperville Central, their loss dropped their record down to 5-5.

Neuqua Valley couldn't quite get it done against Naperville Central when the teams last played back in April of 2024 as they fell 9-5. Can the Wildcats avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.