The Taft Raiders are taking a road trip to challenge the Stevens Falcons at 11:00 a.m. on Monday. Taft will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each match than the last.
Taft is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. Everything went their way against Holmes on Friday as Taft made off with a 15-1 victory. The Raiders might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won three games by six runs or more this season.
CHRIS ARRIAGA made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he didn't allow a single earned run while striking out ten over seven innings pitched. ARRIAGA was also big at the plate, going 3-for-5 with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, Taft got a massive performance out of SAYBIEN GUZMAN, who went 2-for-5 with three runs, three RBI, and one triple. That triple was GUZMAN's first of the season. Another player making a difference was ELIJAH BARRERA, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with one home run, two runs, and two RBI.
Taft kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 16 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 4 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 contests they've averaged 9.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for Stevens, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Friday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Churchill on Saturday, sneaking past 4-2. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Falcons have posted since February 18th.
Joshua Hernandez spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned runs on seven hits and racked up seven Ks. He also tossed a walk, which is notable because Stevens is undefeated when he allows at most one walk, but 2-6 otherwise.
On the hitting side, Stevens saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jayden Gonzales, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI. The dominant performance gave Gonzales a new career-high in RBI. Jordan Vargas was another, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one double, and one RBI.
The victory snapped Stevens' losing streak at four games and leaves them with a 5-6 record. As for Taft, the win got them back to even at 5-5.
Taft skirted past Stevens 6-5 when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Will Taft repeat their success, or does Stevens have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
