St. Ignatius College Preparatory hasn't had much luck against Saint Francis recently, but that could start to change on Friday. The Wildcats will square off against the Lancers at 4:00 p.m. After the two teams made easy work of their previous opponents, one won't be so lucky on Friday.
St. Ignatius College Preparatory took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They never let Presentation get on the board and left with an 11-0 victory. The win continues a trend for the Wildcats in their matchups with the Panthers: they've now won seven in a row.
Olivia Dollard made a splash while hitting and pitching. She kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out seven over five innings pitched. Dollard was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double. That stolen base marked the first that she has snagged this season.
In other batting news, St. Ignatius College Preparatory let Vicky Carrillo and Gianna Galarza run wild. Carrillo went a perfect 3-for-3 with four RBI and two runs, while Galarza went 2-for-3 with one home run and two runs. Sasha Vassar also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
St. Ignatius College Preparatory always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .607. The last time their OBP was this high was back in May of 2024.
Meanwhile, Saint Francis had already won nine in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 6.8 runs) and they went ahead and made it ten on Wednesday. Everything went their way against the Warriors as they made off with a 9-2 victory. The Lancers might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 14 matchups by six runs or more this season.
Hailey Nguyen looked comfortable as she pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks any time she's pitched this season.
At the plate, Peyton Tsao was incredible, going 2-for-3 with two runs, two doubles, and one stolen base. Those two doubles gave her a new career-high. Hayden Hummel was another key player, going 2-for-4 with three RBI, two doubles, and one run.
Saint Francis pushed their record up to 20-2 with the win, which was their third straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.7 runs over those games. As for St. Ignatius College Preparatory, their win was their first in the league, bumping their league record up to 1-4 and their overall record up to 10-6.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. St. Ignatius College Preparatory has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.8 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Saint Francis struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 8.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
St. Ignatius College Preparatory might still be hurting after the 10-0 defeat they got from Saint Francis when the teams last played back in March. Can the Wildcats avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
