Baseball Game Preview: Queen Creek Bulldogs vs. Highland Hawks

Queen Creek has gone 8-2 against Highland recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Bulldogs will head out on the road to square off against the Hawks at 3:45 p.m. Queen Creek will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each match than the last.

Queen Creek had to skate by with only a one-run margin when they last took the field, which might have inspired the seven-run drubbing they dealt Mountain Ridge on Wednesday. The Bulldogs blew past the Mountain Lions 11-4. The Bulldogs not only won on Wednesday, but they posted their biggest win since March 6th.

Brayden Kitmitto spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered three earned (and one unearned) runs on five hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks any time he's pitched this season.

Jet Berry

Runs Batted In (Career)

04/02/25 vs Mountain Ridge	4
03/20/25 vs Perry	2
04/01/25 vs Highland	1
03/28/25 @ Red Mountain	1

At the plate, Jet Berry was a standout: he went 3-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Jordan Ransom was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-4.

Queen Creek was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .379. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Mountain Ridge only posted a batting average of .231.

Meanwhile, after a string of three wins, Highland's good fortune finally ran out on Tuesday. They fell just short of Queen Creek by a score of 5-4.

Queen Creek's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 10-3. The home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.7 runs on average over those games. As for Highland, their defeat dropped their record down to 9-7.

Queen Creek came out on top in a nail-biter against Highland when the teams last played on Tuesday, sneaking past 5-4. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Bulldogs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.