Baseball Game Preview: North Johnston Panthers vs. Smithfield-Selma Spartans

North Johnston is a perfect 10-0 against Smithfield-Selma since March of 2016 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Saturday. The Panthers will take on the Spartans in a tournament on Saturday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (North Johnston has five straight wins, Smithfield-Selma has 32 straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.

While North Johnston's victory against Goldsboro wasn't quite the blowout it was the last time the pair played, they still came out on top. The Panthers sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-1 win over the Cougars on Thursday. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Panthers have posted since March 6th.

Tyler Coates

Batters Struck Out

04/10/25 vs Goldsboro	7
04/01/25 vs Princeton	10
03/26/25 vs Harnett Central	10
03/19/25 @ Franklin Academy	10
03/13/25 vs South Johnston	8
+ 2 more games

Tyler Coates spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered a run (which was unearned) on two hits and racked up seven Ks. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in seven consecutive appearances.

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Maurice Love, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-2.

Meanwhile, Thursday just wasn't the day for Smithfield-Selma's offense. They lost 14-0 to Hunt on Thursday.

North Johnston's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-4. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Smithfield-Selma, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-16.

Smithfield-Selma's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: North Johnston has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .485. It's a different story for Smithfield-Selma, though, as they've only averaged .290. Will they be able to contain North Johnston's hitters?

Everything went North Johnston's way against Smithfield-Selma in their previous matchup back in May of 2024, as North Johnston made off with an 11-1 win. Will the Panthers repeat their success, or do the Spartans have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.