The St. John Paul II Catholic Lions will venture away from home to square off against the San Tan Charter Roadrunners at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The two teams are strolling into their games after big wins in their previous games.
St. John Paul II Catholic took a loss when they played away from home on Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Friday. They were the clear victor by an 11-1 margin over Antelope. The win continues a trend for the Lions in their matchups with the Rams: they've now won four in a row.
Wyatt Bacome was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He pitched four innings while giving up just one earned run off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive appearances. He was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 2-for-3. He also put up a home run, which was his first of the season.
Derek Guzman
| 03/14/25 vs Antelope | 2 |
| 03/03/25 @ Bourgade Catholic | 1 |
| 02/27/25 vs Anthem Prep | 1 |
| 03/25/24 @ Heritage Academy | 1 |
| 03/23/24 vs Trivium Prep | 1 |
In other batting news, Derek Guzman was incredible, scoring a run and stealing Two bases. while going 2-for-2. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in RBI (two). Adrian Zaragoza also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.
St. John Paul II Catholic was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .409. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Meanwhile, San Tan Charter put another one in the bag last Thursday to keep their perfect season alive. Everything went their way against Madison Highland Prep as San Tan Charter made off with a 9-1 victory. That's two games straight that the Roadrunners have won by exactly eight runs.
Anthony Crupi looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Tommy Crupi, who scored two runs and stole Two bases. while going 3-for-4. Jonathan Markland was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
San Tan Charter's win was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 5-0. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 13.8 runs over those games. As for St. John Paul II Catholic, they now have a winning record of 3-2.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. St. John Paul II Catholic has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 5.6 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like San Tan Charter struggles in that department as they've been averaging 6.2 stolen bases. The only question left is which team can snag more.
St. John Paul II Catholic suffered a grim 12-2 defeat to San Tan Charter when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Can St. John Paul II Catholic avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
