Baseball Game Preview: Battle Spartans vs. Centralia Panthers

The Battle Spartans will venture away from home to face off against the Centralia Panthers at 5:00 p.m. on Friday.

Battle is headed into Friday's game looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their eighth straight game dating back to last season on Saturday. They came up short against Fort Zumwalt North, falling 12-2. That's two games in a row now that the Spartans have lost by exactly ten runs.

Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Centralia faced off against Bowling Green on Tuesday. Centralia walked away with an 11-6 win over Bowling Green. The high-scoring effort was just what the Panthers needed considering they were shut out in their previous matchup.

Cole Higginson was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Higginson was also big at the plate, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-4. He also hit a double, marking his first of the season.

In other batting news, Centralia got a big performance out of Henry Bohlmeyer, who went 1-for-4 with one triple, one stolen base, and two RBI. Bohlmeyer has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played. Another player making a difference was Anthony Ford, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-5.

Battle's loss dropped their record down to 0-2. As for Centralia, their record is now 4-1.

Everything went Battle's way against Centralia in their previous matchup back in April of 2018, as Battle made off with an 18-6 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for Battle since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.