The Santa Cruz Valley Dust Devils will venture away from home to challenge the Horizon Honors Eagles at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Santa Cruz Valley had to skate by with only a two-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the 13-run drubbing they dealt Arizona Lutheran Academy on Thursday. The Dust Devils never let the Coyotes get on the board and left with a 13-0 win. The Dust Devils haven't had any issues with the Coyotes recently, as the game was their third consecutive victory against them.
Ceeana Banda
| 04/24/25 vs Arizona Lutheran Academy | 3 |
| 04/22/25 vs Tombstone | 1 |
| 04/19/25 vs Mohave | 1 |
| 04/15/25 @ Benson | 1 |
| 03/24/25 @ Gilbert Classical Academy | 1 |
The team relied heavily on Ceeana Banda, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with four RBI, two runs, and one stolen base. Those three hits gave her a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Mikayla Leos, who went 2-for-3 with three RBI, one run, and one double.
Santa Cruz Valley hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team's really been improving in that area: they've now improved their strikeout total in three consecutive matchups.
Meanwhile, Horizon Honors entered their tilt with Camp Verde on Saturday with nine consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with ten. They put the hurt on the Cowboys with a sharp 16-3 win.
Audriana Anglada was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out nine over four innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with one run and one double.
In other batting news, Horizon Honors let Nicole Topete and Danica Gutierrez run wild. Topete fired off two home runs and five RBI while going 2-for-4, while Gutierrez got on base in all four of her plate appearances with one home run, four runs, and three RBI. Josie Barden was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one home run.
Horizon Honors' victory was their ninth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 18-1. The road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.6 runs on average over those games. As for Santa Cruz Valley, their record now sits at 17-8.
Monday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Santa Cruz Valley hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .369. However, it's not like Horizon Honors struggles in that department as they've averaged .493. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Santa Cruz Valley couldn't quite get it done against Horizon Honors in their previous matchup back in March as they fell 6-3. Can the Dust Devils avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
