Decatur Central is 2-8 against Franklin Community since May of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Decatur Central Hawks will head out on the road to square off against the Franklin Community Grizzly Cubs at 6:00 p.m. Decatur Central will be strutting in after a win while Franklin Community will be coming in after a loss.
Decatur Central took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They came out on top against Martinsville by a score of 6-1 (the very same score they lost by in their prior game).
Jaylan Yates spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned run on five hits and racked up 12 Ks. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't pitched less than six innings in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Zach Losito was excellent, scoring a run and stealing four bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Levi Seib, who scored two runs while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Franklin Community came up short against Plainfield on Saturday and fell 8-5.
Owen Bullington made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances. The team also got some help courtesy of Carsten Bland, who scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in two of his five plate appearances.
Decatur Central's victory bumped their record up to 9-13. As for Franklin Community, their defeat dropped their record down to 11-9.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Tuesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Decatur Central has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Franklin Community struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.2. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Decatur Central came up short against Franklin Community when the teams last played back in May of 2023, falling 6-3. Can Decatur Central avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
