The Indianapolis Lutheran Saints are taking a road trip to challenge the Decatur Central Hawks at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Indianapolis Lutheran is coming into the contest hot, having won their last five games.
On Thursday, Indianapolis Lutheran narrowly escaped with a win as the squad sidled past Indianapolis Scecina Memorial 9-8. That's two games straight that the Saints have won by just one run.
Owen Lecher made a splash while hitting and pitching. He pitched 3.1 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one hit in six consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Nate Hughes, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and one double. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April. Another player making a difference was Dax Lockliear, who went 2-for-3 with two runs and one double.
Decatur Central came out on top against Whiteland on Tuesday thanks in part to the team's impressive five-run seventh inning. The Hawks walked away with a 9-4 victory over the Warriors. That looming 9-4 mark stands out as the most commanding margin for the Hawks yet this season.
Like Indianapolis Lutheran, Decatur Central also got a great game from a two-way player: Zach Losito. On the mound, he struck out six batters over 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). Losito was also stellar in the batter's box, going 3-for-4 with two stolen bases and three runs. Decatur Central is undefeated when Losito posts two or more runs, but 3-7 otherwise.
In other batting news, Drew Dalton was incredible, going 3-for-4 with five RBI, two doubles, and one stolen base. Levi Seib was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Decatur Central has been performing well recently as they've won eight of their last ten matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 10-7 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.7 runs on average over those games. As for Indianapolis Lutheran, their victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 11-6.
Decatur Central's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Indianapolis Lutheran hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .321. It's a different story for Decatur Central, though, as they've only averaged .241. Will they be able to contain Indianapolis Lutheran's hitters? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.
