For the first time this season, Lakeland will have a chance to prove themselves in a conference matchup. They will face off against the Prairie Heights Panthers at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Lakeland has three straight wins, Prairie Heights has 12 straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Lakeland's pitching crew heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They blew past Lakewood Park Christian 20-0.
Garrett Pieri
| 04/11/25 @ Lakewood Park Christian | 4 |
| 04/05/24 vs Lakewood Park Christian | 3 |
| 04/10/25 vs Sturgis | 2 |
| 05/22/24 @ Fairfield | 2 |
| 05/18/24 vs Wawasee | 2 |
Garrett Pieri was a major factor no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Pieri was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with four RBI. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Lakeland got a massive performance out of Carson Mickem, who scored three runs and stole a base while getting on base in all five of his plate appearances. What's more, Mickem posted three hits, the most he's had since back in May of 2024. The team also got some help courtesy of Keyan Arroyo, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 4-for-5.
Lakeland always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .711. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Lakewood Park Christian only posted an OBP of .263.
Meanwhile, Prairie Heights came up short against Fremont on Saturday, falling 11-5.
Austin Abbott and Braydon Duke did some serious damage despite the final result: Abbott scored two runs while going 2-for-4, while Duke scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Prairie Heights' defeat dropped their record down to 0-3. As for Lakeland, their record is now 3-0.
Prairie Heights' pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Lakeland hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .487. It's a different story for Prairie Heights, though, as they've only averaged .162. Will they be able to contain Lakeland's hitters?
Everything went Lakeland's way against Prairie Heights in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, as Lakeland made off with an 8-2 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Lakers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
