West Campus is 9-1 against Mesa Verde since May of 2015 and they'll have a chance to extend that dominance on Friday. The West Campus Warriors will be playing in front of their home fans against the Mesa Verde Mavericks at 3:30 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
West Campus' pitching crew heads into the matchup hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. Everything went their way against Valley as West Campus made off with a 10-0 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Warriors.
Jarrett Arias was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run while striking out 11 over six innings pitched. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring three runs and stealing Four bases. while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. He has become a key player for West Campus: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 1-4 otherwise.
Emmett Scharn
| 03/06/25 @ Valley | 4 |
| 02/26/25 @ Natomas | 2 |
| 03/01/25 @ Rosemont | 1 |
| 02/24/25 @ San Juan | 1 |
| 02/22/25 vs Kennedy | 1 |
In other batting news, Emmett Scharn was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing Four bases. while going 1-for-2. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in stolen bases. The team also got some help courtesy of Levi Marculescu, who scored two runs and stole a base.
Meanwhile, Mesa Verde came tearing into Thursday's game with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 6 runs), and they left with even more momentum. Everything went their way against the Wolves as they made off with an 11-3 win. While the Mavericks didn't have the best season last year (they finished 6-21), it's starting to look like those struggles are a thing of the past.
Peyton Bonilla looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Mason Nelson, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with one triple and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Jonny Alger, who scored a run and stole a base while getting on base in four of his five plate appearances.
Mesa Verde kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 11 hits. That's the most hits they've managed all season.
Mesa Verde's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-1. The wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 3.3 runs on average over those games. As for West Campus, they now have a winning record of 5-4.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Friday as neither team is afraid to steal. West Campus has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 8.3 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Mesa Verde struggles in that department as they've been averaging 4.6 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
West Campus took their win against Mesa Verde when the teams last played back in April of 2018 by a conclusive 13-2. Does West Campus have another victory up their sleeve, or will Mesa Verde turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
