West Noble is preparing for their first conference matchup of the season on Thursday. They will face off against the Prairie Heights Panthers at 5:30 p.m. Prairie Heights took a loss in their last matchup and will be looking to turn the tables on West Noble, who comes in off a win.
West Noble will roll into the contest after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up one run on Monday, then bounced right back against Hamilton on Wednesday. The Chargers put the hurt on the Marines with a sharp 25-2 victory.
Trevor Steele
| 04/16/25 @ Hamilton | 6 |
| 04/09/24 vs Hamilton | 3 |
| 05/04/24 @ Angola | 1 |
| 04/20/24 vs Columbia City | 1 |
| 04/15/24 vs Whitko | 1 |
Trey Shisler and Trevor Steele were a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Shisler pitched three innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits. Meanwhile, Steele struck out six batters over two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (and not a single walk). Those six strikeouts gave him a new career-high. At the plate, Shisler scored four runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4, while Steele scored three runs and stole a base while going 4-for-5.
In other batting news, Joe Button was a standout: he scored three runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4. Those two hits gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Rolando Villanueva, who went 1-for-2 with one home run and four RBI.
West Noble was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .447. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .304 or higher every time they've taken the field this season.
Meanwhile, Prairie Heights was not able to break out of their rough patch on Wednesday as the team picked up their 13th straight defeat dating back to last season. They were a single run away from ending the streak, but they lost an 8-7 heartbreaker at the hands of Bronson. On the bright side, the seven- run performance marked the Panthers' highest-scoring game to date.
Prairie Heights saw eight different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Joel Graber, who went 2-for-4 with two stolen bases and two RBI. Those RBI marked the first that Graber brought in this season. Braydon Duke was another, scoring a run while going 1-for-4.
Prairie Heights' loss dropped their record down to 0-4. As for West Noble, their win ended a ten-game drought on the road dating back to last season and puts them at 2-1.
Prairie Heights' pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: West Noble hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .418. It's a different story for Prairie Heights, though, as they've only averaged .215. Will they be able to contain West Noble's hitters?
West Noble came out on top in a nail-biter against Prairie Heights when the teams last played back in May of 2024, sneaking past 4-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Chargers since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
