Central Noble is 2-7 against Manchester since May of 2018 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Saturday. The Central Noble Cougars will look to defend their home field against the Manchester Squires at 10:00 a.m. Central Noble will be hoping to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each game than the last.
Central Noble gave up the first runs on Friday, but they didn't let that get them down. They had just enough and edged Lakewood Park Christian out 10-9.
Central Noble let Treyton Fletcher and Carter Wilkinson loose on the outfield. Fletcher scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-3, while Wilkinson scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Jaxon Copas was another key contributor, scoring a run while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
Meanwhile, Manchester put the finishing touches on their eighth blowout victory of the season on Wednesday. They put the hurt on Northfield with a sharp 16-1 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for Manchester.
Harper Sturtsman was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits (and only one walk). Sturtsman has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in five consecutive pitching appearances. Sturtsman was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with three RBI.
In other batting news, Manchester got a massive performance out of Reiss Gaerte, who scored three runs and stole three bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Garrett Sites, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-2.
Central Noble has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven contests, which provided a massive bump to their 14-8 record this season. As for Manchester, they pushed their record up to 19-5-1 with that win, which was their tenth straight at home.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Central Noble has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Manchester struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.7. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Central Noble took their victory against Manchester in their previous meeting back in May of 2023 by a conclusive 7-0. Does Central Noble have another victory up their sleeve, or will Manchester turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
