The North Central Panthers will head out on the road to face off against the Anderson Indians at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Fans were treated to a battle of the Panthers on Thursday. North Central skirted past Park Tudor 3-1. The win made it back-to-back victories for North Central.
North Central got a great performance from Cy Street as he struck out seven batters over six innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and only one walk).
Tyler Jaynes
| 04/16/26 @ Park Tudor | 3 |
| 04/10/26 vs Carmel | 2 |
| 05/15/25 vs Ben Davis | 2 |
| 05/01/25 @ McCutcheon | 2 |
| 04/26/25 @ Indianapolis Lutheran | 2 |
At the plate, North Central let Christian Kropa and Tyler Jaynes run wild. Kropa went 2-for-3 with two runs, while Jaynes went 2-for-4 with three RBI and one double. Those three RBI gave Jaynes a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Rykin Matthias, who went 2-for-4 with one run and one double.
Meanwhile, Anderson was able to grind out a solid win over Southport on Thursday, taking the game 5-2.
Branson Hemme spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned runs on five hits and racked up ten Ks. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Kaydin Hutchison, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. He also put up a double, which was his first of the season. Cole Roberts was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one home run and one stolen base.
Anderson lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. That's the most home runs they've managed all season.
Anderson's record now sits at 2-4. As for North Central, they now have a winning record of 2-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Saturday. North Central hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.7 home runs per game. However, it's not like Anderson struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.5 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
