Bloomington South has gone 6-1 against Southport recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Wednesday. The Panthers will challenge the Cardinals at 6:00 p.m. Bloomington South is coming into the game hot, having won their last eight games.
On Saturday, Bloomington South needed a bit of extra time to put away Castle. They had just enough and edged out the Knights 5-4. That's two games straight that the Panthers have won by just one run.
Reid Walker was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Walker was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one run.
In other pitching news, Xavier Hemingway looked comfortable as he pitched 2.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one earned run any time he's pitched this season.
Jake McCammon
| 05/03/25 vs Castle | 3 |
| 04/26/25 vs New Albany | 2 |
| 04/12/25 @ Silver Creek | 2 |
| 04/30/25 vs Jennings County | 1 |
| 04/26/25 vs New Albany | 1 |
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Jake McCammon, who went 3-for-5 with one home run, two RBI, and one double. Those three hits gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Drew Palileo, who went 1-for-3 with three RBI and one double.
The home team had won the previous three meetings between Southport and Columbus East, and Columbus East kept the tradition alive. The Cardinals fell just short of the Olympians by a score of 4-3 on Monday.
Riley Matlock was cooking despite his team's loss, going 3-for-4 with two triples, two runs, and one double. Those triples marked the first that he has hit this season. Austin Van Velse was another key player, going 1-for-2 with two stolen bases.
Bloomington South's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-5. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.7 runs over those games. As for Southport, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Bloomington South has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Southport struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.5 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Bloomington South skirted past Southport 6-4 in their previous matchup back in May of 2024. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Panthers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
