Baseball Game Preview: Volcano Vista Hawks vs. Cleveland Storm

Volcano Vista is 2-8 against Cleveland since May of 2021 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Hawks will be playing at home against the Storm at 3:00 p.m. Volcano Vista is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.6 runs per game this season.

Volcano Vista is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Farmington, who was ranked tenth at the time (Volcano Vista was ranked ninth). The Hawks walked away with a 6-3 victory over the Scorpions on Friday. The Hawks haven't had any issues with the Scorpions recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive win against them.

Alijah Romero

Batters Struck Out (Career)

04/25/25 @ Farmington	7
03/08/25 vs Organ Mountain	6
03/22/25 vs Los Lunas	5
02/25/25 vs Atrisco Heritage Academy	5
03/01/25 vs La Cueva	4

Alijah Romero made a splash no matter where he played. He struck out seven batters over 5.1 innings while giving up three earned runs off eight hits. Those seven strikeouts gave him a new career-high. He was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with two RBI.

In other pitching news, Franscico Vigil looked comfortable as he tossed 1.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances.

Back at the plate, Josiah Gutierrez was incredible, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double. Aziah Gonzales was another key player, going 1-for-2 with two runs.

The home team had won the previous four meetings between Cleveland and Piedra Vista, and Cleveland kept the tradition alive. The Storm were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over the Panthers on Friday.

Cleveland has been performing well recently as they've won nine of their last 11 matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 17-7 record this season. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.5 runs over those games. As for Volcano Vista, their win bumped their record up to 14-10.