The Los Lunas Tigers will challenge the West Mesa Mustangs at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. The timing is sure in Los Lunas' favor as the team sits on eight straight wins at home (dating back to last season) while West Mesa has been banged up by five consecutive losses on the road.
Los Lunas is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on Atrisco Heritage Academy with a sharp 16-1 victory on Tuesday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Tigers considering their one-run performance the contest before.
Matthew Castillo
| 03/13/25 @ Organ Mountain | 2 |
| 04/01/25 vs Atrisco Heritage Academy | 1 |
| 03/19/25 @ Rio Grande | 1 |
| 03/01/25 vs Clovis | 1 |
Matthew Castillo made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. He is becoming a predictor of Los Lunas' success: when he allows at most two earned runs the team is 5-2 (and 4-5 when he doesn't). Castillo was also stellar in the batter's box, going a perfect 2-for-2 with three runs, three RBI, and one triple. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in May of 2024.
In other batting news, Los Lunas let JJ Utash and Jasiah Byers run wild. Utash went 2-for-3 with one home run, six RBI, and two runs, while Byers went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI. That's the most runs Byers has posted since back in April of 2024. Kaiden Reese was another key player, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 2-for-2.
Los Lunas was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .600. They are a perfect 4-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, West Mesa fell victim to Eldorado and their airtight pitching crew on Saturday. They came up short against the Golden Eagles, falling 16-0. Having soared to a lofty 15 runs in the game before, the Mustangs' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
Los Lunas has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 9-7 record this season. As for West Mesa, their defeat dropped their record down to 6-9.
West Mesa's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Los Lunas has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.4 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for West Mesa, though, as they've been averaging only 3.5 strikeouts. Will Los Lunas keep running through batters, or will the Mustangs buck the trend?
Los Lunas skirted past West Mesa 10-9 when the teams last played back in March of 2016. Do the Tigers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Mustangs turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
