Baseball Game Preview: Fruita Monument Wildcats vs. Grandview Wolves

The Fruita Monument Wildcats will face off against the Grandview Wolves at 3:30 p.m. on Friday.

Fruita Monument came up short against Bishop Manogue on Saturday, falling 11-5. The Wildcats have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

Blake Elsberry was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.

Meanwhile, Grandview entered their tilt with Highlands Ranch on Wednesday with four consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with five. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Falcons a 4-0 shutout. The four-run effort marked the Wolves' lowest-scoring matchup of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.

The result came thanks to Justin Dean's shutout, as he gave up just three hits and racked up ten Ks. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Chase Chapman, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with two RBI.

Grandview pushed their record up to 5-1 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Fruita Monument, their loss dropped their record down to 4-4.

The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Fruita Monument has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.6 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Grandview struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one. Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.