The Cactus Shadows Falcons are taking a road trip to square off against the Mesquite Wildcats at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. Cactus Shadows will be looking to extend their current eight-game winning streak.
Cactus Shadows is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They were the clear victors by a 19-4 margin over St. Mary's on Wednesday.
Cactus Shadows got a great performance from Megan Hughes as she tossed six innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off seven hits. Hughes has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 14 consecutive appearances.
Madi Handke
| 04/16/25 @ St. Mary's | 3 |
| 04/14/25 vs St. Mary's | 2 |
| 03/19/25 vs ALA - Queen Creek | 2 |
| 03/17/25 vs Combs | 2 |
| 03/14/25 @ Paradise Honors | 2 |
At the plate, Cactus Shadows let Madi Handke and Bailey Fitzmaurice run wild. Handke went 3-for-4 with three runs, three RBI, and two doubles, while Fitzmaurice went 4-for-5 with three runs, four RBI, and one stolen base. Those three hits gave Handke a new career-high. Ava Fossey was another key player, going 2-for-4 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Cactus Shadows was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .486. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .417 or higher in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Mesquite can bid farewell to their five-game losing streak thanks to their game on Friday. They blew past Thunderbird 21-5. The Wildcats not only won on Friday, but they posted their biggest win since March 1st (when they won 22-6).
Zoe Cuevas was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She tossed 4.1 innings while giving up three earned (and two unearned) runs off four hits. Cuevas was even better at the plate, getting on base in five of her six plate appearances with three runs.
In other pitching news, Layla Ontiveros looked comfortable as she pitched 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs or hits.
Back at the plate, Mia Gutierrez and Jasmine Jaramillo did most of the damage at the plate: Gutierrez went 4-for-5 with three runs, four RBI, and two doubles, while Jaramillo went 2-for-5 with five RBI, two runs, and one stolen base. The team also got some help courtesy of Olivia Romans, who got on base in four of her five plate appearances with four runs and one RBI.
Cactus Shadows' win was their sixth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 18-9. The road victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.0 runs over those games. As for Mesquite, their record now sits at 6-14.
Mesquite's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Cactus Shadows has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9 hits per game. It's a different story for Mesquite, though, as they've been averaging 12.8 hits. Given Cactus Shadows' sizable advantage in that area, the Wildcats will need to find a way to close that gap. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other softball content.
