North-South week highlights prep tennis, softball and baseball

Apr. 24—Lots of bragging rights, a couple of trophies and the excitement of playing against some of your friends. Terre Haute high school athletes and students can enjoy all of that and more the next two days during the annual North-South week.

Tennis and softball will be played Thursday, both at South, while the first of two consecutive Friday night baseball games is scheduled to be played Friday at North.

Both Thursday events have traveling trophies involved, the Racket for tennis and the Glove for softball.

Both those competitions also figure in the Conference Indiana standings and so does Friday night's baseball game. Baseball's Glove trophy won't be presented until after the May 3 series finale, however, which also will be at South.

—Girls tennis — The host Braves are 9-4 so far, while the Patriots are 2-3.

South has 5-0 Conference Indiana wins over the Bloomington schools, both of which beat North 3-2.

But if the Braves are favorites, they are uneasy ones. This is often the best of the North-South rivalries.

A win for the Braves would keep them in contention for a conference title, which will run through Columbus North.

—Softball — Both teams are off to good starts, with the Patriots coming in 9-5 and the Braves 12-5.

South is 2-1 in conference games while North is 1-0, so Thursday's game is also a big factor in that CI race.

A pair of youngsters should loom large in the outcome of Thursday's game. Sophomore Emma Cesinger has been pitching extremely well for South, while freshman Kenzie Zigler has complemented a strong returning group of hitters for North, which has scored in double figures in six straight games.

—Baseball — The host Patriots are 5-1 so far, while the Braves were 6-5 and trying to snap a four-game losing streak Wednesday night against Bloomfield.

South has the better conference record, however, having beaten the Bloomington North team that beat North in the Patriots' only league game so far. South has also beaten Southport.

If the contrast in the softball rivalry is offense vs. run prevention, the contrast in baseball is youth vs. experience.

South, whose coach Jason Fields will be directing his first North-South game, is loaded with senior veterans. North has just one senior on its roster, with freshmen and sophomores — extremely promising freshmen and sophomores — have several players who are also in their first North-South game.

* Thursday

* — Tennis at South, 5 p.m.; Softball at South, 5:30 p.m. varsity start.

* Friday

— Baseball at North, 6 p.m.