The Desert Christian Eagles are taking a road trip to square off against the Phoenix Christian Cougars at 3:45 p.m. on Monday. Given that the two teams suffered a loss in their last games, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this contest.
Things were looking good for Desert Christian after they put the first points on the board on Thursday, but unfortunately for them things went downhill from there. They fell just short of Palo Verde by a score of 6-5.
Caden Esquerra made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 3-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in March of 2024. James Harris also deserves some recognition as he snagged his first stolen base of the season.
Meanwhile, Phoenix Christian's undefeated season came to an end after seven games on Tuesday. They fell just short of Kingman by a score of 11-10. The pitching woes were uncharacteristic for the Cougars, who until this matchup were averaging 2.5 runs allowed.
Kevin Palafox was huge no matter where he played even without the win. He tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Palafox was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
In other batting news, Zach Brigowatz was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring three runs while going 2-for-5. Another player making a difference was Timmy Randolph, who scored a run while going 1-for-5.
Even though they lost, Phoenix Christian was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .421. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .391 or higher in five consecutive games.
Having lost for the first time this season, Phoenix Christian fell to 7-1. As for Desert Christian, their record is now 1-4.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Desert Christian has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Phoenix Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other baseball content.
