The Conant Cougars will take on the Leyden Eagles at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Both teams took a loss in their last game, so they'll have plenty of motivation to get the 'W'.
Conant fought the good fight in their extra-innings contest against Niles North on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Vikings by a score of 2-1. The loss put an end to the Cougars' undefeated start to the season.
Franklin Kirchner
| 03/25/25 @ Niles North | 13 |
| 03/18/25 vs Streamwood | 11 |
| 05/06/24 @ Palatine | 9 |
| 04/15/24 vs Schaumburg | 8 |
| 06/07/24 vs York | 7 |
Franklin Kirchner was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 13 batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just one earned run off two hits. Those 13 strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with one home run.
Kirchner wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Jacob Szpiganowicz, who went 1-for-3 with one double.
Meanwhile, Leyden didn't have quite enough to beat Willowbrook on Monday and fell 8-7. The loss put an end to the Eagles' undefeated start to the season.
Angel Gutierrez and Jacob Ganir did some serious damage despite the final result: Gutierrez went 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double, while Ganir scored a run while going 2-for-3. Sammy Calderon was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4.
Having lost for the first time this season, Leyden fell to 2-1. As for Conant, their defeat was their first of the season and also makes their record 2-1.
Leyden's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Conant has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .485. It's a different story for Leyden, though, as they've only averaged .354. Will they be able to contain Conant's hitters?
Conant skirted past Leyden 12-10 in their previous matchup back in March of 2024. Does Conant have another victory up their sleeve, or will Leyden turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
