The Centennial Bulldogs will challenge the Coronado Cougars at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. The last three games Centennial has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Centennial is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Nevada's top teams: Green Valley, who was ranked 15th at the time (Centennial was ranked fifth). Centennial fell just short of Green Valley by a score of 4-3 on Thursday. The Bulldogs' defeat signaled the end of their four-game winning streak.
Leeah Ibarra was cooking despite her team's loss, going 1-for-3 with one triple and one run. Campbell Cole was another key player, going 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI.
Even though they lost, Centennial hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now struck out at most five strikeouts in five consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, Coronado had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 12.3 runs) and they went ahead and made it four on Thursday. They never let the Skyhawks get on the board and left with a 21-0 win. Considering the Cougars have won five matches by more than seven runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Paisley Magdaleno made a splash while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 3-for-4.
In other batting news, Coronado got a massive performance out of Alohi Mundon, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, two stolen bases, and five RBI. That's the most hits Mundon has posted since March 4th. Another player making a difference was Mary Lou Tsunis, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI.
Centennial's loss dropped their record down to 7-4. As for Coronado, their victory bumped their record up to 9-7.
Coronado's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Monday. Centennial has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Coronado, though, as they've been averaging only 2.1 strikeouts. Will Centennial keep running through batters, or will Coronado buck the trend? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more softball content.
