Softball Game Preview: Irvine Vaqueros vs. Trabuco Hills Mustangs

The Irvine Vaqueros are taking a road trip to challenge the Trabuco Hills Mustangs at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday. Both come into the matchup bolstered by wins in their previous matches.

Having struggled with seven losses in a row dating back to last season, Irvine turned things around against El Toro on Tuesday. They came out on top against the Chargers by a score of 7-3. The Vaqueros' hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.

Bella Rosser looked comfortable as she pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits.

Katie Liu

Doubles (Career)

03/04/25 vs El Toro	2
03/01/25 @ Granada Hills Charter	1
02/22/25 @ Kennedy	1
03/11/24 @ Northwood	1
02/14/24 vs Tesoro	1

At the plate, Katie Liu and Reese Villanueva did most of the damage at the plate: Liu scored a run while going 2-for-4, while Villanueva scored a run while going 3-for-3. The dominant performance also gave Liu a new career-high in doubles (two). Evelyn Shen also deserves some recognition as she scored her first run of the season.

Meanwhile, Trabuco Hills waltzed into their game on Monday with five straight wins... but they left with six. They were the clear victor by a 15-4 margin over the Eagles. Considering the Mustangs have won three contests by more than eight runs this season, Monday's blowout was nothing new.

Trabuco Hills' victory was their fourth straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 7-1. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.8 runs over those games. As for Irvine, their win (their first of the season) made their record 1-6.

Irvine came out on top in a nail-biter against Trabuco Hills in their previous meeting back in February of 2023, sneaking past 7-5. The rematch might be a little tougher for Irvine since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.