The Mount Michael Benedictine Knights will square off against the Tekamah-Herman Tigers at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The timing is sure in Mount Michael Benedictine's favor as the team sits on three straight wins at home while Tekamah-Herman has been banged up by 15 consecutive losses on the road dating back to last season.
Mount Michael Benedictine proved they can win big on Saturday (they won by six) and on Monday they proved they can win the close ones too. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Omaha North, sneaking past 13-12.
The team relied heavily on Barett Sykora, who went 3-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and two doubles. That's the most hits he has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was JJ Stiles, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Mount Michael Benedictine kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in four consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Tekamah-Herman). Their pitchers stepped up to hand Benson an 11-0 shutout on Monday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Tigers considering their two-run performance the match before.
Cale Belfrage and Robert (Parke) Loftis were major factors no matter where they played. Throwing, Belfrage didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out ten over four innings pitched. Meanwhile, Loftis pitched one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. Belfrage has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances. At the plate, Belfrage fired off two home runs, seven RBI, and two stolen bases while going 3-for-3, while Loftis went 1-for-2 with two stolen bases and two runs. Those home runs marked the first that Belfrage has launched this season.
In other batting news, Spencer Pagels was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double. The team also got some help courtesy of Landon Miller, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one stolen base and one run.
Tekamah-Herman's first victory this season bumped their record up to 1-12. As for Mount Michael Benedictine, their win bumped their record up to 9-10.
Mount Michael Benedictine took their victory against Tekamah-Herman in their previous matchup back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 18-3 score. Will the Knights repeat their success, or do the Tigers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
