The Florence Eagles will head out to face off against the Madison Central Jaguars at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Friday just wasn't the day for Florence's offense. They fell 4-0 to Loyd Star on Friday. Having soared to a lofty 15 runs in the game before, the Eagles' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
Payne Weaver
| 03/27/26 vs Loyd Star | 1 |
| 03/13/26 @ Newton County | 1 |
| 03/07/26 @ Clinton | 1 |
| 02/28/26 vs Madison Central | 1 |
Florence got a good showing from Payne Weaver, who struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits (and only one walk). Weaver has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in four consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Florence saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Austin Pickett, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base and one double. Pickett has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played.
Meanwhile, Madison Central faced Clinton in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Friday. The Jaguars blew past the Arrows 10-3. Considering the Jaguars have won six contests by more than five runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Madison Central let Steven Lee and Landon Hathorn run wild. Lee got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one RBI, while Hathorn got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and two RBI. Hathorn has become a key player for Madison Central: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 7-8 otherwise. Reed Sandberg was another key player, going 1-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double.
Madison Central has been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 11-8 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.7 runs over those games. As for Florence, their loss ended a three-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 7-9-2.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Saturday as neither team is afraid to steal. Florence has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Madison Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 2.8 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Florence suffered a grim 11-1 defeat to Madison Central in their previous matchup back in February. Can the Eagles avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
