Central Catholic is 6-1 against Ross since April of 2017 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Fighting Irish will face off against the Little Giants at 5:00 p.m. Central Catholic will be strutting in after a victory while Ross will be coming in after a defeat.
Central Catholic barely beat Cardinal Stritch the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Fighting Irish put the hurt on the Cardinals with a sharp 10-1 win on Saturday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Fighting Irish considering their one-run performance the matchup before.
Tristan Headrick spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on three hits and racked up eight Ks.
Dre Wardrop
| 05/08/25 @ Wauseon | 5 |
| 05/17/25 vs Cardinal Stritch | 4 |
| 04/27/25 @ Whitmer | 4 |
| 04/30/25 vs St. John's Jesuit | 2 |
| 05/10/25 vs Brother Rice | 1 |
| + 2 more games |
At the plate, Central Catholic let Dre Wardrop and Josh Rahe run wild. Wardrop went a perfect 4-for-4 with four stolen bases, three runs, and one double, while Rahe went 3-for-4 with two runs, two doubles, and one stolen base. Wardrop is becoming a predictor of Central Catholic's success: when he posts at least two stolen bases the team is 3-1 (and 3-16 when he doesn't). Preston Fryzel also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Central Catholic was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .414. The last time their batting average was this high was was before the start of last season.
Meanwhile, Ross was not able to break out of their rough patch on Monday as the team picked up their fourth straight loss. They were a single run away from ending the streak, but they lost a 6-5 heartbreaker at the hands of Sandusky.
Braylon Schneider was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up four earned (and two unearned) runs off three hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in three consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, Breylen Garza made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and got on base in four of his five plate appearances with one run. Cade Reineck was another key player, going 2-for-4 with one stolen base, one run, and one RBI.
Central Catholic's victory ended a seven-game drought at home and bumped them up to 6-17. As for Ross, they now have a losing record of 11-12.
Central Catholic was able to grind out a solid win over Ross in their previous meeting back in May of 2023, winning 5-2. Do the Fighting Irish have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Little Giants turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
