Softball Game Preview: Gilbert Tigers vs. Highland Hawks

The Gilbert Tigers are taking a road trip to square off against the Highland Hawks at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

On Thursday, Gilbert came up short against Higley and fell 12-9.

Lexie Kyger made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and went 2-for-4 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs. She also put up a triple, which was her first of the season. Arianna Leon was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two stolen bases and two runs.

Meanwhile, Highland had already won three in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 10.3 runs) and they went ahead and made it four on Thursday. They came out on top against the Jaguars by a score of 11-7. 11 seems to be a good number for the Hawks as the team scooped up a victory with the same number of runs in their previous game.

Cambria Chacon looked comfortable as she tossed four innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits.

On the hitting side, Abbie Shellabarger and MiaLani Ocampo did most of the damage at the plate: Shellabarger went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, two stolen bases, and four RBI, while Ocampo went 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and one double. Those four RBI gave Shellabarger a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Karsyn Norton, who went 3-for-5 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one double.

Highland always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .561. That was just more of the same: they've now posted an OBP of .528 or higher in four consecutive games.

Gilbert's loss dropped their record down to 9-12-1. As for Highland, their record now sits at 16-9.

Gilbert couldn't quite finish off Highland in their previous matchup back in March of 2024 and fell 7-5. Can the Tigers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.