The Liberty Lions will square off against the Canyon View Jaguars at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday. The last six games Liberty has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Liberty fought the good fight in their extra-innings contest against Pinnacle on Monday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Pioneers by a score of 5-4. That makes it the first time this season the Lions have let down their home crowd.
Meanwhile, Canyon View entered their tilt with Buckeye on Tuesday with 12 consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with 13. They blew past the Hawks 17-6. Considering the Jaguars have won 16 games by more than five runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Carter Radwanski made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, pitching three innings while giving up just two earned runs off two hits. What's more, he posted two strikeouts, the most he's had since back in March. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, Ethan Santoyo and Rolando Valles did most of the damage at the plate: Santoyo went a perfect 2-for-2 with three runs, one triple, and one stolen base, while Valles went a perfect 4-for-4 with three runs, three RBI, and one double. That's the most hits Santoyo has posted since back in March. Ricardo Yuriar was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one triple, one run, and one double.
Canyon View always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .667. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Buckeye only posted an OBP of .318.
Canyon View pushed their record up to 24-4 with the victory, which was their tenth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 10.6 runs over those games. As for Liberty, their defeat dropped their record down to 15-9.
Liberty skirted past Canyon View 3-2 in their previous matchup back in February. Will the Lions repeat their success, or do the Jaguars have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
