St. Mary Central Catholic is 1-7 against Hopewell-Loudon since April of 2022 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Panthers are taking a road trip to face off against the Chieftains at 5:00 p.m. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (St. Mary Central Catholic 4.1, Hopewell-Loudon 3.2) so any runs scored will be well earned.
On Wednesday, St. Mary Central Catholic didn't have quite enough to beat Gibsonburg and fell 5-4.
Toby Gibson
| 05/07/25 @ Gibsonburg | 1 |
| 04/16/25 vs Hopewell-Loudon | 0 |
| 04/15/25 vs Calvert | 1 |
St. Mary Central Catholic got a good showing from Toby Gibson, who tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. Gibson has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one hit in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Cayden Wikel and Blake Finneran did some serious damage despite the final result: Wikel went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI, while Finneran got on base in two of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases and two runs.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Hopewell-Loudon, who bounced back after a loss on the road last Wednesday. They were the clear victors by a 9-1 margin over St. Joseph Central Catholic on Wednesday. The victory continues a trend for the Chieftains in their matchups with the Crimson Streaks: they've now won eight in a row.
Austin Smith spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered a run (which was unearned) on three hits and racked up six Ks.
On the hitting side, Hopewell-Loudon got a massive performance out of Kellen Frankart, who went 1-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and one stolen base. Braylon Martinez was another key player, going 2-for-4 with three stolen bases, three RBI, and one run.
Hopewell-Loudon pushed their record up to 14-4 with the win, which was their fifth straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.2 runs over those games. As for St. Mary Central Catholic, their loss dropped their record down to 11-8.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. St. Mary Central Catholic has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.7 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Hopewell-Loudon struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 4.3 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
