The Valley Christian Defenders will head out to square off against the El Segundo Eagles at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. One thing working in Valley Christian's favor is that they have posted at least ten runs in their last five matches.
Valley Christian's pitching crew heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Tuesday. They were the clear victors by a 16-0 margin over Maranatha. The result was nothing new for the Defenders, who have now won 12 contests by ten runs or more so far this season.
Rachel Zhang was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out six over four innings pitched. Zhang was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with one run and one RBI.
In other pitching news, Kaylee Garvin looked comfortable as she tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. She has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than two walks in five consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, Valley Christian let Olivia Wise and Kayla Martin run wild. Wise got on base in all three of her plate appearances with one home run, three RBI, and two runs, while Martin went 2-for-4 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. Those three RBI gave Wise a new career-high. Aubrielle Ramirez was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs and one triple.
Valley Christian always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .581. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Maranatha only posted an OBP of .176.
Meanwhile, El Segundo waltzed into their matchup on Friday with two straight wins... but they left with three. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 4-3 W against the Spartans.
Jacy Lindsay spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered three earned runs on seven hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Sienna Mayer, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one double. Allie Stevenson also deserves some recognition as she snagged her first stolen base of the season.
Valley Christian is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five games. That's provided a nice bump to their 16-5-1 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.4 runs over those games. As for El Segundo, their record is now 21-5.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Wednesday. Valley Christian hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 1 home runs per game. However, it's not like El Segundo struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.8 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Valley Christian might still be hurting after the 6-0 defeat they got from El Segundo in their previous meeting back in February of 2024. Can the Defenders avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
