The Columbus East Olympians will head out on the road to take on the Roncalli Royals at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Columbus East will head into Wednesday's game on the come-up: they were handed a 12-run defeat in their previous outing, but they didn't let that bad energy affect their game against Bloomington North on Wednesday. Columbus East narrowly escaped with a win as the team sidled past Bloomington North 9-7.
Chase Niese and Aj Tindell did most of the damage at the plate: Niese scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances, while Tindell went 3-for-4 with two runs, a triple, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Blake Borkhardt, who scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Roncalli scored the most runs they've had all season to find success on Saturday. They blew past Greeneview 16-2. Perhaps unsurprisingly given the team's high-flying offense, the game also marked the team's biggest victory of the season.
Charlie Baker spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered two runs (both of which were unearned) on one hit and racked up six Ks.
At the plate, Roncalli got a massive performance out of Parker Doughtery, who went 2-for-2 with three RBI, a triple, and a stolen base. Another player making a difference was Johnny Jaffe, who scored two runs while going 4-for-4.
Columbus East's win ended a 15-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 8-16. As for Roncalli, their record is now 15-7.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. Columbus East has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 2.7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Roncalli struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.4. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Columbus East suffered a grim 13-0 defeat to Roncalli in their previous meeting back in May of 2023. Can Columbus East 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