Baseball Game Preview: Madison Central Indians vs. South Laurel Cardinals

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Previous Games

03/21/24 - Away	9-2 W
04/15/22 - Away	11-2 W
04/17/21 - Home	12-2 W
05/07/18 - Home	0-1 L
03/26/18 - Away	13-5 W
+ 4 more games

Madison Central has gone 7-2 against South Laurel recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Friday. The Indians will take on the Cardinals at 5:30 p.m. Madison Central's pitching crew has only allowed 3.8 runs per game this season, so South Laurel's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Madison Central will roll into the matchup after a wild two-game stretch: they didn't score any runs on Tuesday, then bounced right back against Henry Clay on Wednesday. The Indians' pitchers stepped up to hand the Blue Devils a 10-0 shutout. Considering the Indians have won eight contests by more than six runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.

Meanwhile, South Laurel had to endure a three-game losing streak, but that streak is no more. They came out on top against Harlan County by a score of 5-0 on Thursday.

The result came thanks to Will Alsip's shutout, as he gave up just three hits and racked up ten Ks. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Jack Vaughn was a standout: he went 2-for-3 with three stolen bases and two runs. That's the most hits he has posted since back in March. Keaton Smith also deserves some recognition as he hit his first triple of the season.

Madison Central's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 15-11. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.5 runs over those games. As for South Laurel, their victory bumped their record up to 14-4.

Everything went Madison Central's way against South Laurel in their previous meeting back in March of 2024, as Madison Central made off with a 9-2 win. Do the Indians have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Cardinals turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.