Normal West is a perfect 9-0 against Centennial since April of 2016 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Thursday. The Wildcats will look to defend their home field against the Chargers at 4:30 p.m. Normal West is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last three games.
Normal West is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on Bloomington with a sharp 16-6 win on Tuesday.
Kate McGowan spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned (and three unearned) runs on nine hits and racked up six Ks.
McKinley Pate
| 04/21/26 @ Bloomington | 5 |
| 05/15/25 @ Urbana | 4 |
| 03/25/26 @ Watertown | 2 |
| 03/18/26 vs St. Joseph-Ogden | 2 |
| 05/13/25 @ Peoria | 2 |
On the hitting side, McKinley Pate was a standout: she got on base in all four of her plate appearances with five RBI, three runs, and one triple. Those five RBI gave her a new career-high. Elsah Ganschow was another key player, getting on base in four of her five plate appearances with four runs, two stolen bases, and two RBI.
Normal West always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .550. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their OBP total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Centennial came up short against Peoria Notre Dame on Monday, falling 15-1. The defeat continues a trend for the Chargers in their meetings with the Irish: they've now lost four in a row.
Centennial saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Sydney Hall, who went 1-for-3 with one run and one double.
Normal West's victory bumped their record up to 6-9. As for Centennial, their loss dropped their record down to 2-11.
Normal West beat Centennial 6-3 in their previous meeting back in April of 2025. Will the Wildcats repeat their success, or do the Chargers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
