Friends' Central will head out on the road to square off against Shipley at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, these teams will really light up the scoreboard.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Friends' Central and Academy of the New Church meet (seven straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Thursday. Friends' Central's pitchers stepped up to hand Academy of the New Church an 18-0 shutout.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Shipley). They put the hurt on Abington Friends with a sharp 11-5 win on Tuesday. Shipley not only won on Tuesday, but they posted their biggest win since April 22, 2025 (when they won 11-0).
Amelia Nannen was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out nine batters over seven innings while giving up five earned runs off 11 hits. Nannen was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one triple, one run, and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Jenna Wilhelm, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, six RBI, and two runs. Ashley McCauley was another key player, going 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one triple.
Shipley always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .618. That's the best OBP they've posted all season.
The victory got Shipley back to even at 3-3. As for Friends' Central, the win got them back to even at 1-1.
Friends' Central got the 'W' in their previous meeting back in April of 2025 against Shipley by a conclusive 10-0 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for Friends' Central since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
