An exciting North v. South battle is about to be fought. The Millard North Mustangs will head out on the road to square off against the Elkhorn South Storm at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Millard North will be looking to extend their current seven-game winning streak.
On Thursday, Millard North needed a bit of extra time to put away Gretna East. They skirted past the Griffins 3-2. That's two games straight that the Mustangs have won by just one run.
Noah Gartner tossed a big game, pitching five innings while giving up just one earned run off one hit.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Alex Buresh, who got on base in all five of his plate appearances with one triple and one run. What's more, he posted two hits, the most he's had since back in April of 2024. Tanner Evans also deserves some recognition as he hit his first double of the season.
Meanwhile, Elkhorn South's hitters rose to the challenge against a Warriors pitching crew that boasted an average of only 3.83 runs allowed on Monday. The Storm walked away with a 10-7 win over Omaha Westside. The victory continues a trend for the Storm in their matchups with the Warriors: they've now won eight in a row.
Cam Cooper and Brody Jindra made a splash no matter where they played. On the mound, Cooper tossed 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Jindra struck out six batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off two hits. At bat, Cooper scored two runs and stole two bases while going 1-for-4, while Jindra scored three runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-4.
In other batting news, Eamon O'Gorman was excellent, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of his five plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Brooks Berliner, who went 1-for-2 with one stolen base and two RBI.
Millard North's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-1. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.0 runs on average over those games. As for Elkhorn South, they now have a winning record of 3-2.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Millard North hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.6 home runs per game. However, it's not like Elkhorn South struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.6 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Millard North couldn't quite get it done against Elkhorn South in their previous meeting back in April of 2024 as they fell 9-4. Can the Mustangs avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
