The Gretna East Griffins will head out to take on the Millard North Mustangs at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Gretna East 2.9, Millard North 2.9) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Gretna East is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Nebraska's top teams: Bennington, who was ranked seventh at the time (Gretna East was ranked 12th). The Griffins fell just short of the Badgers by a score of 2-1 on Tuesday. Having soared to a lofty ten runs in the game before, the Griffins couldn't push the score so high this time.
Trevor Cox was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he struck out seven batters over 6.2 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off four hits (and only one walk). He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Gretna East saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Tanner Erdkamp, who scored a run while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, Millard North waltzed into their game on Tuesday with five straight wins... but they left with six. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 2-1 W against the Monarchs. While the Mustangs didn't have the best season last year (they finished 10-19), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
Alexander Michaud looked comfortable as he tossed four innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits.
On the hitting side, Marcus Hankins and Spencer Phillips did most of the damage at the plate: Hankins went 1-for-2 with one home run, while Phillips went 1-for-2 with one home run.
Millard North lost a few balls and finished the game with two home runs. That's the most home runs they've posted since the start of last season.
The loss snapped Gretna East's winning streak at three games and leaves them with a 5-2 record. As for Millard North, their record now sits at 6-1.
Gretna East came out on top in a nail-biter against Millard North when the teams last played back in April of 2024, sneaking past 2-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Griffins since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
