Softball Recap: Eight Straight Home Wins for Palo Verde

Palo Verde is still undefeated this season after their game against Centennial on Thursday, but Centennial came as close as anyone has to beating them. The Panthers' pitcher stepped up to hand the Bulldogs a 1-0 shutout. The Panthers have seen this before: they got the W the last time they saw the Bulldogs, too.

The result came thanks to Ava Koenig's shutout, as she gave up just five hits and racked up eight Ks. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Palo Verde's victory was truly a team effort as four different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Alexis Kearnes, who went 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI. That double was Kearnes' first of the season.

Panthers

Previous Games (Home)

04/10/25 vs Centennial	1-0
04/03/25 vs Southeast Career Tech	15-2
03/14/25 vs Bishop Gorman	7-4
03/12/25 vs Arbor View	11-1
03/06/25 vs Rancho	15-0
+ 3 more games

Palo Verde's win was their eighth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 12-0. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.5 runs on average over those games. As for Centennial, their loss was their first in the league, dropping their league record down to 5-1 and their overall record down to 11-8.

Coming up, Palo Verde will be playing in front of their home fans against Coronado at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. The Panthers' pitchers better be ready for this one: the Cougars have averaged an impressive 7.4 runs per game this season. As for Centennial, they will head out to challenge Liberty at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. The Bulldogs' pitchers better be ready for this one: the Patriots have averaged an impressive 7.1 runs per game this season.