The Desert Christian Knights will venture away from home to square off against the Hesperia Christian Patriots at 3:15 p.m. on Friday.
Desert Christian fell victim to Littlerock and their airtight pitching crew on Tuesday. They took a 3-0 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Lobos. The Knights have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Meanwhile, Hesperia Christian waltzed into their matchup on Wednesday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They came within a single run of losing the streak, but they secured a 5-4 W against the Jackrabbits.
Gabe Sanchez and Nathaniel Renner made a big impact while hitting and pitching. Throwing, Sanchez pitched four innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off four hits. Meanwhile, Renner didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit over five innings pitched. What's more, he posted five strikeouts, the most he's had since back in April of 2024. At the plate, Sanchez went 2-for-4 with two RBI, while Renner scored two runs and stole a base while going 1-for-4. Renner is becoming a predictor of Hesperia Christian's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 2-6 when he doesn't).
In other pitching news, Jaden Solorzano looked comfortable as he tossed one inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (three).
Back at the plate, Luke Beasley was incredible, getting on base in all five of his plate appearances with one home run and two RBI. He also got three hits, which is notable because Hesperia Christian is undefeated when he posts at least three hits, but 2-6 otherwise.
The win got Hesperia Christian back to even at 6-6. As for Desert Christian, their defeat dropped their record down to 1-3-2.
Hesperia Christian's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Desert Christian has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .438. It's a different story for Hesperia Christian, though, as they've only averaged .342. Will they be able to contain Desert Christian's hitters?
Desert Christian suffered a grim 16-9 defeat to Hesperia Christian when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Can Desert Christian avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
