Baseball Recap: Ponderosa Takes a Loss

The home team had won the previous two meetings between Ponderosa and Bella Vista, and Bella Vista kept the tradition alive. The Ponderosa Bruins fell just short of the Bella Vista Broncos by a score of 2-1 on Wednesday. The Bruins were not able to repeat the success they had when they faced the Broncos earlier this season, when they won 6-5.

Joe Stevens was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits while striking out nine over five innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't given up a single earned run in four consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Ponderosa saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Tyler Purdom, who went 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI.

Ponderosa has also been struggling recently as they've lost five of their last six games. That's put a noticeable dent in their 6-5 record this season. Bella Vista's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 3-4.

Ponderosa and Bella Vista could both be facing uphill battles in their next games considering their disadvantage in the MaxPreps California Rankings. Ponderosa will face off against Christian Brothers at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday down 251 places (355 vs. 104). Meanwhile, Bella Vista (ranked 452nd) will meet Rio Americano (ranked 204th) at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.