Softball Recap: Central Noble Makes It Six in a Row at Home

Cougars

Margin (Wins)

04/28/25 vs West Noble	22
04/23/25 @ Westview	12
04/26/25 vs Norwell	10
04/22/25 vs Prairie Heights	10
04/17/25 vs Lakewood Park Christian	10

Central Noble waltzed into their game on Thursday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They blew past the Lakeland Lakers 9-1. The Cougars might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won nine matchups by seven runs or more this season.

Grace Swank made a splash no matter where she played. She struck out 15 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with two RBI and one run.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Kendra Smith, who went 3-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI. Those three hits gave her a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Kaitlyn Tilley, who went 2-for-3 with one run, one double, and one RBI.

Central Noble always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .514. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Lakeland only posted an OBP of .323.

Central Noble pushed their record up to 11-4 with the victory, which was their sixth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.3 runs on average over those games. As for Lakeland, they have traveled a rocky road recently, having lost seven of their last eight contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 4-11 record this season.

Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Central Noble will square off against Goshen at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday. As for Lakeland, they will face off against Elkhart Christian Academy at 5:30 p.m. on Friday.