Baseball Game Preview: John Paul II Catholic Saints vs. Bear Grass Charter Bears

John Paul II Catholic is 0-4 against Bear Grass Charter since April of 2022 but things could change on Friday. The John Paul II Catholic Saints will venture away from home to face off against the Bear Grass Charter Bears at 6:00 p.m. John Paul II Catholic is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.6 runs per game this season.

On Thursday, John Paul II Catholic sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-1 win over Wayne Christian. The victory made it back-to-back wins for the Saints.

James Donofrio

Batters Struck Out (Career)

03/20/25 vs Wayne Christian	9
03/01/24 vs Faith Christian	7
03/07/24 vs Croatan	6
03/14/25 @ Faith Christian	5
04/30/24 @ Arendell Parrott Academy	5

James Donofrio was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out nine over 6.2 innings pitched. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in strikeouts. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 3-for-3.

Donofrio wasn't the only one making solid contact as two players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Max Mason, who scored a run while going 1-for-2.

Meanwhile, Bear Grass Charter waltzed into their contest on Tuesday with two straight wins... but they left with three. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Wildcats a 17-0 shutout. That 17 run margin sets a new team best for the Bears this season.

John Paul II Catholic's victory was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 6-3. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.2 runs on average over those games. As for Bear Grass Charter, their record now sits at 5-1.