Baseball Recap: Gardena Comes Up Short

Gardena was not able to break out of their rough patch on Saturday as the team picked up their seventh straight defeat. They were two runs away from ending the streak, but they lost an 8-6 heartbreaker at the hands of the Monroe Vikings. The Panthers were given a dose of their own medicine in this game as the Vikings apparently hadn't forgotten their loss the last time these teams played back in April of 2019.

Juan Castellanos

Base on Balls Against

04/18/26 @ Monroe	2
03/30/26 vs King/Drew	2
03/21/26 vs University	2
03/12/26 @ Port of Los Angeles	2
03/07/26 vs Environmental Charter	2
03/06/26 @ Westchester	1

Juan Castellanos was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. He didn't allow a single earned run over six innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one stolen base.

In other batting news, Francisco Pavon was cooking despite his team's loss, going 1-for-4 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.

Gardena's defeat dropped their record down to 4-14-1. As for Monroe, the victory (which was their fifth in a row) raised their record to 18-1.

Both teams are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Gardena will challenge Rancho Dominguez at 3:00 p.m. on Monday. As for Monroe, they will be playing in front of their home fans against Arleta at 3:00 p.m. on Monday. The Mustangs have struggled to contain batters this season (they've allowed 6.93 runs per game on average), something the Vikings will no doubt try to take advantage of.