The Maria Carrillo Pumas will challenge the Montgomery Vikings at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. Maria Carrillo is coming into the game on a three-game losing streak.
Rancho Cotate hit Maria Carrillo with a six-run first inning last Friday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Pumas fell just short of the Cougars by a score of 11-9. That's two games in a row now that the Pumas have lost by exactly two runs.
Zach Brandt
| 04/18/25 vs Rancho Cotate | 3 |
| 03/05/25 vs Vintage | 2 |
| 02/28/25 @ Alameda | 2 |
| 03/19/25 vs Ukiah | 1 |
Zach Brandt was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-3 with three runs, one triple, and one stolen base. Maria Carrillo is 2-1 when Brandt posts two or more runs, but 7-8 otherwise. Max Petersen was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
For whatever reason, it's the away team that's had the advantage when Montgomery and Santa Rosa meet (three straight games heading into this one) and that held true again on Friday. The Vikings blew past the Panthers 12-5. Considering the Vikings have won seven matchups by more than five runs this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Ryder Dienhart spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered five earned runs on ten hits.
At the plate, Hayden Quam was a standout: he got on base in three of his five plate appearances with two RBI, one run, and one double. The team also got some help courtesy of Lukas Walker, who got on base in four of his five plate appearances with two runs and two RBI.
Montgomery is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-10 record this season. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.3 runs on average over those games. As for Maria Carrillo, their loss dropped their record down to 9-9.
Maria Carrillo skirted past Montgomery 6-5 when the teams last played back in March of 2024. Do the Pumas have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Vikings turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
