Preview: Lathrop Spartans vs. Ceres Bulldogs
Lathrop is 0-7 against Ceres since March of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Friday. The Lathrop Spartans will head out on the road to challenge the Ceres Bulldogs at 4:00 p.m. Lathrop will be coming into the contest with an undefeated record on the line.
Lathrop put their dominant pitchers on display in the team's third consecutive shutout on Tuesday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand Pacheco a 13-0 shutout. Fans of Lathrop have seen this all before: every one of the games they've played this season has ended in a blowout.
Ariana Fuentes and Maci De Costa made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Fuentes tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits (she also only allowed one walk). Meanwhile, De Costa tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (she also didn't allow any walks). Fuentes has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts every time she's pitched this season. At the plate, Fuentes went 2-for-4 with three runs, four RBI, and two doubles, while De Costa went 2-for-3 with three RBI.
In other batting news, Lathrop let Tatianna Lopez and Aubree Martinez loose on the outfield. Lopez scored a run while going 3-for-4, while Martinez scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. Another player making a difference was Luz De Luna, who scored two runs while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, after only one run in their last game, Ceres made sure to put some runs up on the board against Johansen on Monday. Ceres was the clear victor by a 20-3 margin over Johansen. That 17 run margin sets a new team best for Ceres this season.
Like Lathrop, Ceres also got a great game from a two-way player: Alizae Cole. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and only one hit while striking out 11 over five innings pitched. Cole was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in three of her five plate appearances.
In other batting news, Isabela Giraldes was a standout: she scored four runs while getting on base in four of her five plate appearances. Ava Montesdeoca was another key contributor, getting on base in four of her five plate appearances with a triple, a stolen base, and two RBI.
Lathrop's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 6-0. They've been dominating during the matchups in that stretch too, as they've won by an average of 12.7 runs. As for Ceres, their record now sits at 3-7.
Ceres' hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Lathrop has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 11 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Ceres, though, as they've been averaging only 3.5 per game. Will Lathrop keep running through batters, or will Ceres buck the trend?
Lathrop might still be hurting after the 13-0 defeat they got from Ceres in their previous meeting back in April of 2023. Thankfully for Lathrop, Sehren Martinez (who fired off two home runs, four runs, and three RBI while going 4-for-4) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
