Baseball Game Preview: Sonoma Valley Dragons vs. Rancho Cotate Cougars

The Sonoma Valley Dragons are taking a road trip to square off against the Rancho Cotate Cougars at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Sonoma Valley's pitching crew has only allowed 3.8 runs per game this season, so Rancho Cotate's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Sonoma Valley fought the good fight in their extra-innings match against Concord on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Bears by a score of 2-1. The Dragons just can't catch a break and have now endured three defeats in a row.

Luciano Hernandez

Hits Against

03/04/25 vs Concord	2
02/24/25 vs Miramonte	1
02/22/25 vs Hercules	2

Luciano Hernandez put in work no matter where he played. On the mound, he tossed 7.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off two hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base. That stolen base was his first of the season.

Hernandez wasn't the only one making solid contact as three players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Austin Hughes, who scored a run and stole Two bases. while going 1-for-3. That's the most stolen bases Hughes has posted since back in February of 2024. Jake Hilton also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.

Meanwhile, Rancho Cotate came up short against Justin-Siena on Wednesday, falling 11-3.

Rancho Cotate also got a good showing from Blake Kearney, who tossed 1.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit.

Rancho Cotate now has a losing record of 2-3. As for Sonoma Valley, their record is now 1-3.

Sonoma Valley was able to grind out a solid win over Rancho Cotate in their previous matchup back in March of 2024, winning 4-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for Sonoma Valley since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.