Softball Game Preview: El Modena Vanguards vs. Canyon Comanches

El Modena hasn't had much luck against Canyon recently, but that could start to change on Thursday. The El Modena Vanguards will take on the Canyon Comanches at 3:15 p.m. El Modena will be looking to extend their current eight-game winning streak.

El Modena is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of California's top teams: Cypress, who was ranked 21st at the time (El Modena was ranked third). El Modena didn't even let Cypress on the board on Tuesday, marking El Modena's second-straight 1-0 shutout.

The result came thanks to Sara Pinedo's shutout, as she gave up just a hit and racked up 11 Ks. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in four consecutive appearances.

At the plate, El Modena's win was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Lucy Mitchell, who went 1-for-3 with one double and one RBI. Jillian Alvarado also deserves some recognition as she snagged her first stolen base of the season.

Meanwhile, Canyon fell victim to Pacifica and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They took a 5-0 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Mariners. The Comanches have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.

El Modena's victory was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 9-1. Those victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.7 runs on average over those games. As for Canyon, their loss dropped their record down to 9-3.

El Modena skirted past Canyon 2-1 in their previous matchup two weeks ago. Does El Modena have another victory up their sleeve, or will Canyon turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.