The Heritage Academy Heroes will challenge the Horizon Honors Eagles at 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Heritage Academy barely beat Tempe Prep the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Heroes put the hurt on the Knights with a sharp 8-2 win on Monday.
Paul (PJ) Soltero made a splash no matter where he played. On the mound, he struck out 13 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off five hits. He has become a key player for Heritage Academy: the team is 2-1 when he posts at least eight strikeouts, but 2-6-1 otherwise. Soltero was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
Isaias Ruiz
| 04/14/25 vs Tempe Prep | 4 |
| 03/24/25 @ Highland Prep West | 4 |
| 03/05/25 @ St. John Paul II Catholic | 2 |
| 04/11/25 vs Gilbert Classical Academy | 1 |
| 03/18/25 vs North Valley Christian Academy | 1 |
| + 1 more games |
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Isaias Ruiz, who scored three runs and stole four bases while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. He is becoming a predictor of Heritage Academy's success: when he posts at least two stolen bases the team is 2-1 (and 2-6-1 when he doesn't). Eduardo Nieblas also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.
Meanwhile, Horizon Honors waltzed into their game on Monday with three straight wins... but they left with four. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Titans a 10-0 shutout. The Eagles might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven matches by six runs or more this season.
Like Heritage Academy, Horizon Honors also got a great game from a two-way player: Aidan Andrews. He looked comfortable on the mound, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit over five innings pitched. Andrews has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances. Those three stolen bases gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Lucas Holweger was incredible, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances. Chase Wilson was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing a base while getting on base in two of his three plate appearances.
Horizon Honors always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .562. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as ALA - Anthem South only posted an OBP of .118.
Horizon Honors pushed their record up to 12-4-1 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.6 runs on average over those games. As for Heritage Academy, their victory bumped their record up to 4-7-1.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Heritage Academy has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10.2 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Horizon Honors struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7.8 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.
