Baseball Game Preview: Monroe Central Golden Bears vs. Blackford Bruins

Golden Bears

Runs

05/15/25 vs Richmond	4
05/12/25 vs Elwood	8
05/10/25 vs Winchester Community	5
05/06/25 vs Tri	9
05/05/25 @ Union County	2
+ 18 more games

Monroe Central is on a three-game streak of home losses, and Blackford an eight-game streak of away losses. However, someone's due for a change in luck on Friday. The Monroe Central Golden Bears will welcome the Blackford Bruins at 5:30 p.m. Monroe Central is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.5 runs per game this season.

For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Monroe Central and Richmond meet (three straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Thursday. The Golden Bears took a 7-4 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Red Devils.

Myles Oliphant was huge no matter where he played even without the win. He looked comfortable on the mound, tossing 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Oliphant was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two RBI.

Oliphant wasn't the only one making solid contact as four players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Caleb Luedike, who went 2-for-3 with one run.

Meanwhile, Blackford came up short against Frankton on Thursday, falling 15-2.

Monroe Central's defeat dropped their record down to 10-13. As for Blackford, their loss dropped their record down to 8-13.

Blackford's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Monroe Central hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .319. It's a different story for Blackford, though, as they've only averaged .234. Will they be able to contain Monroe Central's hitters?

Monroe Central couldn't quite get it done against Blackford in their previous meeting back in May of 2024 as they fell 7-3. Will the Golden Bears have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.