Champaign Central has gone 7-1 against Decatur Eisenhower recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Friday. The Maroons will be playing in front of their home fans against the Panthers at 4:30 p.m. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (Champaign Central has ten straight wins, Decatur Eisenhower has seven straight defeats), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
Champaign Central had to skate by with only a two-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the ten-run drubbing they dealt Oakwood on Thursday. The Maroons never let the Comets get on the board and left with a 10-0 victory. Considering the Maroons have won 12 matchups by more than nine runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Haley Helm
| 05/08/25 vs Oakwood | 7 |
| 05/07/25 @ Meridian | 13 |
| 05/06/25 vs Centennial | 13 |
| 05/03/25 vs Springfield | 13 |
| 05/02/25 vs Windsor/Stewardson-Strasburg | 11 |
| + 6 more games |
Haley Helm was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out seven over six innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in 11 consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with two RBI and one double.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Maisie Bowers, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with two runs, one double, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Kaitlyn Helm, who went 2-for-3 with two runs and one double.
Champaign Central always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .611. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Oakwood only posted an OBP of .100.
Meanwhile, Tuesday just wasn't the day for Decatur Eisenhower's offense. They came up short against Lincoln on Tuesday, falling 19-0.
Champaign Central's win was their fifth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 19-1. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.6 runs on average over those games. As for Decatur Eisenhower, their loss dropped their record down to 2-15.
Champaign Central took their win against Decatur Eisenhower when the teams last played back in April of 2023 by a conclusive 16-1 score. Do the Maroons have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Panthers turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
