Softball Game Preview: Pinole Valley Spartans vs. Tamalpais Red Tailed Hawks

The Pinole Valley Spartans are taking a road trip to take on the Tamalpais Red Tailed Hawks at 4:30 p.m. on Friday. Pinole Valley's pitching crew has only allowed 3.4 runs per game this season, so Tamalpais' hitters will have their work cut out for them.

The home team had won the previous three meetings between Pinole Valley and El Cerrito, and Pinole Valley kept the tradition alive. The Spartans put the hurt on the Gauchos with a sharp 8-2 victory on Tuesday. The Spartans haven't had any issues with the Gauchos recently, as the game was their ninth consecutive win against them.

Mckenzie Ortega

Batters Struck Out

04/22/25 vs El Cerrito	10
04/16/25 vs Saint Mary's	6
04/14/25 vs Salesian College Preparatory	11
04/10/25 @ Analy	12
04/03/25 @ Alhambra	8
+ 11 more games

Mckenzie Ortega made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out ten batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts any time she's pitched this season. She was also big at the plate, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with two runs and one RBI.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Katie Gonzalez, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI, one run, and one double. That's the most hits she has posted since back in March. Gabriella Ornelas was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs.

Meanwhile, Tamalpais hadn't done well against Redwood recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Wednesday. The Red Tailed Hawks won by a run and slipped past the Giants 1-0. Winning may never get old, but the Red Tailed Hawks sure are getting used to it with their third in a row.

Tamalpais pushed their record up to 11-4 with the victory, which was their sixth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.7 runs on average over those games. As for Pinole Valley, their record now sits at 10-6.