Baseball Game Preview: Florence Gophers vs. Valley Christian Trojans

Florence hasn't had much luck against Valley Christian recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The Gophers will take on the Trojans at 6:30 p.m. Florence's pitching crew has only allowed 3.3 runs per game this season, so Valley Christian's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Florence is coming in off a wild two-game stretch: after soaring to ten runs on Friday, they were much more limited against ALA - West Foothills on Monday. They fell just short of the Guardians by a score of 3-2.

Florence saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kris Aguirre, who scored a run while going 1-for-3. Another was Wyatt Stenson, who went 2-for-4 with one stolen base and one RBI.

The home team had come away the winner the last three times Valley Christian and Gilbert Christian had met, but sadly for the fans who attended this one that wasn't the case. The Trojans came out on top against the Knights by a score of 7-2 on Wednesday.

Jaxen Maxey made a splash while hitting and pitching. He struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off six hits. That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March. He was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 1-for-3.

Valley Christian pushed their record up to 14-2 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. Those road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Florence, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-4.

Florence's speedy runners might be the difference in Thursday's match. The Gophers have been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.3 stolen bases per game. It's a different story for Valley Christian, though, as they've been averaging only 1.3 stolen bases. Will they be able to secure the bases, or will Florence continue to outrun the ball?

Florence suffered a grim 11-0 defeat to Valley Christian in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. Can the Gophers avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.