Baseball Game Preview: Bethlehem Central Eagles vs. Shenendehowa High School

Bethlehem Central is 1-7 against Shenendehowa since April of 2016 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Eagles will venture away from home to square off against the High School at 4:15 p.m. Neither Bethlehem Central nor Shenendehowa posted many runs in their last games, so it might be the pitching crews that decide this one.

Bethlehem Central fell victim to Niskayuna and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They took a 3-0 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Silver Warriors. Eagles fans who chose to attend the game sure picked the wrong one: it was the first time the team has lost against the Silver Warriors since Tuesday.

Shenendehowa's found some homefield redemption this week after a overtime loss to Guilderland on Tuesday. The High School never let the Flyin Dutchman get on the board and left with a 1-0 victory. The win was a breath of fresh air for the High School as it put an end to their four-game losing streak.

Noah Lam looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run over four innings pitched. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because Shenendehowa is 4-1 when he allows at most one earned run, but 2-7 otherwise.

On the hitting side, Shenendehowa saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jaden Ju, who went 1-for-4 with one stolen base and one run.

Bethlehem Central's defeat dropped their record down to 6-9-1. As for Shenendehowa, their record is now 6-8.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Bethlehem Central has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Shenendehowa struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.

Bethlehem Central couldn't quite finish off Shenendehowa in their previous matchup back in May of 2025 and fell 5-3. Can the Eagles avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.