West Noble is 1-9 against Columbia City since April of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. The Chargers will venture away from home to face off against the Eagles at 11:00 a.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
West Noble will bounce into Saturday's match after beating Churubusco, who they had gone 2-7 against in their nine prior meetings. The Chargers never let the Eagles get on the board and left with a 7-0 victory on Thursday. While the Chargers didn't have the best season last year (they finished 5-18-1), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
The result came thanks to Brooks Ruisard's shutout, as he gave up just three hits and racked up nine Ks. He also tossed no earned runs, which is notable because West Noble is undefeated when he allows at most one earned run, but 2-4 otherwise.
Trevor Steele
| 04/24/25 vs Churubusco | 3 |
| 04/19/25 vs Garrett | 2 |
| 04/19/25 vs Garrett | 1 |
| 04/16/25 @ Hamilton | 1 |
| 04/10/25 vs Lakewood Park Christian | 1 |
At the plate, Trevor Steele was excellent, going 2-for-4 with three stolen bases and one RBI. Those three stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Trey Shisler, who got on base in two of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.
The home team had won the previous three meetings between Columbia City and Manchester, and Columbia City kept the tradition alive. The Eagles were the clear victors by a 16-1 margin over the Squires on Friday. That looming 16-1 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Eagles yet this season.
Grayson Bradberry made a splash no matter where he played. He struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. Bradberry was also big at the plate, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs.
In other batting news, Columbia City let Henry Kneller and Carter Wilkinson run wild. Kneller went 3-for-4 with two triples, two RBI, and one run, while Wilkinson went 2-for-4 with three runs, three RBI, and one stolen base. Kneller also hit a double, marking his first of the season. Maddox Moon was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and two RBI.
Columbia City was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .519. They are a perfect 4-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Columbia City is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-3 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.2 runs over those games. As for West Noble, they moved to 6-4 with that victory, which also ended their three-game losing streak.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. West Noble has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 4.6 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Columbia City struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.3 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
West Noble suffered a grim 16-4 defeat to Columbia City in their previous meeting back in April of 2024. Can the Chargers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
