The Bloomington South Panthers will head out to face off against the Martinsville Artesians at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. Bloomington South will be strutting in after a win while Martinsville will be coming in after a loss.
It was a proper cat-fight when Bloomington South challenged Bloomington North on Thursday. The Panthers' pitchers stepped up to hand the Cougars a 3-0 shutout. The victory continues a trend for the Panthers in their matchups with the Cougars: they've now won seven in a row.
Reid Walker was excellent, going 1-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Martinsville was not able to break out of their rough patch on Thursday as the team picked up their 17th straight defeat dating back to last season. They lost 10-0 to Decatur Central. Artesians fans who chose to attend the game sure picked the wrong one: it was the first time the team's lost against the Hawks since on Thursday.
Bloomington South's win bumped their record up to 13-6. As for Martinsville, their loss dropped their record down to 0-16.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Bloomington South has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Martinsville struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 6.6 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Bloomington South came up short against Martinsville in their previous matchup back in May of 2023, falling 8-4. Can the Panthers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
