With far less drama than that of Thursday night’s walkoff thriller, Northshore methodically took care of their counterpart to advance to the second round of the Division I Non-Select playoffs.
That being said, the pitching for the Panthers was nearly just as good as Connor Smith’s gem the night before.
Jacob Neely dominated Natchitoches Central hitters for six-plus innings, and leadoff hitter Gavin Powell collected two of Northshore’s four hits to boost a 5-1 victory Friday night at Ned Eades Field in Slidell to finish the sweep seen on Varsity Sports Now.
Now, the Panthers (27-9) will take all the momentum with them to Hahnville, where they will face the fifth-seeded Tigers in a three-game, second-round series next weekend. Dates and times will be determined soon.
Something will have to give in that one, as Hahnville (28-6) has an even longer win streak than Northshore. Indeed, their streak stands at 18 games, and the Tigers – with LSU commit Koa Romero at the head of their rotation – hasn’t lost since an 8-7 defeat on March 6. Before that, they hadn’t dropped a game since the Saturday after Mardi Gras (Feb. 21).
“Those two guys (Smith and Neely) were excellent, and they have been excellent all year,” Northshore coach Jay Hodges said. “Hopefully, it continues, right? We are playing well at the right time, and we will take the rest of the weekend off and get after it Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
“We have a tough opponent coming up. I know they’re really good.”
Northshore also is really good. And they’re resilient.
Playing as the visitors in Game 2, Northshore a miscue on the basepaths one could have easily seen coming back to bite them. Up 3-0 in the top of the second, Kole Brackman singled in Kirk Johnson, but Gavin Powell was hung up between second and third and was tagged out.
On the next pitch, Derek Weilbaecher flied out, and instead of it being a sac fly and 4-0, it was the third out.
However, Neely (7-2) was unfazed. He only allowed one hit until the fifth, and it appeared as if he might make it back-to-back complete games. But he tired a bit in the seventh, allowing his only two walks to consecutive hitters to lead off the inning, and Hodges went with Cole Bricker to shut it down.
“When we score early, all it does is boost my confidence,” said Neely, who gave up just three hits and struck out eight. “My offense has come through every single time for me, and I hope they continue to. We take it one game at a time, and coming into this one, as a senior I knew it could be my last high school game.
“I’m trying to make memories. This was my last home game, and I will remember this one forever.”
As it often is, there were plenty of tears on the other side, as Chiefs players and coaches hugged and cried before boarding the bus. That being said, Natchitoches Central had plenty to look forward to, as first-year coach Matt Danna took over a team full of underclassmen team and led them to a 21-win season.
“When I got here in June those seniors I have gave me everything they had, and they sat behind a group of 13 seniors (from 2025) and told they weren’t going to be any good without them,” Danna said. “They bought in, they worked, and they earned this spot.
“Credit Northshore, and I told our coaches that I thought those were the best three arms we saw all year. They are electric and elite. They earned it. … We’re young. We had five freshmen in our lineup tonight, and we have something to build on because of what our seniors gave us.”
GAME 2
LINESCORE
(12) Northshore – 210 000 2 – 5 | 4 | 1
(21) Natchitoches Central – 000 000 1 – 1 | 4 | 1
TOP HITTERS
Northshore (27-9): Gavin Powell, 2-3, 2R, HBP; Kole Brackman, 1-1, R, 2HBP, 2RBIs, SB; Derek Weilbaecher, 1-3, SB.
Natchitoches Central (21-14): Jace Hale, 1-4, RBI, SB; Zach Jordan, 1-2, BB, 2B, SB; Cruz Christophe, 1-3, 2B, SB.
DECIDING PITCHERS
WIN: Jacob Neely (7-2), 6+IP, 1R, 1ER, 3H, 2BB, 8K.
LOSS: Daygen Johnson, 6.1IP, 5R, 4ER, 3H, 4BB, 2K.
WP: Johnson 2, Eli Walker 2. IBB: Johnson. Pitches-strikes: Neely 108-61; Cole Bricker 13-10; Johnson 94-48; Walker 10-7. Weather at first pitch: 78, partly cloudy. Time of game: 2:00.