Softball Game Preview: Cibola Cougars vs. Carlsbad Cavemen/Cavegirls

The Cibola Cougars will square off against the Carlsbad Cavemen/Cavegirls at 9:00 a.m. on Friday.

Cibola heads in on the heels of a playoff game on Thursday. They fell just short of La Cueva by a score of 4-3.

Meanwhile, Carlsbad faced Atrisco Heritage Academy in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Thursday. The Cavemen/Cavegirls blew past the Jaguars 10-4. The result was nothing new for the Cavemen/Cavegirls, who have now won 11 matches by six runs or more so far this season.

Aubrey Hernandez made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out six over seven innings pitched. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in seven consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, getting on base in three of her four plate appearances with one RBI.

In other batting news, Katrina Ortega was a standout: she went a perfect 3-for-3 with six RBI, two doubles, and one run. That's the most hits she has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Kalion Fuentes, who went 3-for-4 with two stolen bases, two RBI, and one run.

Carlsbad is on a roll lately: they've won 16 of their last 17 contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 22-7 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.4 runs on average over those games. As for Cibola, their loss dropped their record down to 23-6.

Cibola suffered a grim 10-0 defeat to Carlsbad in their previous meeting back in May of 2023. Can the Cougars avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.