The Port Byron Panthers will challenge the Jordan-Elbridge Eagles at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Port Byron's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Saturday. Everything went their way against Brookfield Central as they made off with an 11-0 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Panthers.
Connor Usowski
| 04/05/25 @ Brookfield Central | 1 |
| 04/01/25 @ Cato-Meridian | 1 |
| 03/28/25 vs Auburn | 0 |
Connor Usowski made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out eight over four innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one hit any time he's pitched this season. He was also big at the plate, scoring three runs and stealing two bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances.
In other pitching news, Jacob Fronce looked comfortable as he pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one hit any time he's pitched this season.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Sawyer Rooker, who went 3-for-4 with four RBI, one triple, and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Nathan Usowski, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4.
Meanwhile, Jordan-Elbridge hadn't done well against Pulaski recently (they were 0-8 in their previous eight matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Monday. The Eagles were the clear victors by a 13-3 margin over the Blue Devils.
Like Port Byron, Jordan-Elbridge also got a great game from a two-way player: Shannon III Ahern. On the mound, Ahern struck out six batters over five innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off three hits. Meanwhile, Nolan Brunelle tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. At the plate, Ahern scored two runs and stole a base while getting on base in two of his four plate appearances, while Brunelle scored a run and stole two bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
In other batting news, David III Dominick was incredible, going 2-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Hunter Bigness, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-2.
Port Byron now has a winning record of 2-1. As for Jordan-Elbridge, their win bumped their record up to 2-0.
Port Byron beat Jordan-Elbridge 3-0 when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Will the Panthers repeat their success, or do the Eagles have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
