Baseball Game Preview: Pinole Valley Spartans vs. De Anza Dons

For the second straight game, Pinole Valley will face off against De Anza. The Spartans will square off against the Dons at 4:00 p.m. on Friday.

Pinole Valley took a loss when they played away from home on Saturday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Wednesday. They came out on top against De Anza by a score of 8-4. The Spartans haven't had any issues with the Dons recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive win against them.

Rey Malan was a major factor while hitting and pitching. He struck out seven batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off five hits (and only one walk). He also tossed a walk, which is notable because Pinole Valley is undefeated when he allows at most one walk, but 6-10-1 otherwise. Malan was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two runs.

Craig Jensen III

Doubles (Career)

04/30/25 vs De Anza	2
04/18/25 vs El Cerrito	1
04/09/25 vs Salesian College Preparatory	1
03/26/25 @ Skyline	1
03/04/25 vs Campolindo	1

In other batting news, Max Castro and Craig Jensen III did most of the damage at the plate: Castro went 1-for-2 with one home run and four RBI, while Jensen III went a perfect 3-for-3 with three RBI, two doubles, and one run. Those two doubles gave Jensen III a new career-high. Charles Vargas was another key player, going 1-for-2 with one home run and two runs.

Pinole Valley hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. The team has now struck out at least four batters in five consecutive games.

Pinole Valley pushed their record up to 10-10-1 with the victory, which was their fifth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.8 runs on average over those games. As for De Anza, they have been struggling recently as they've lost nine of their last 11 contests. That's put a noticeable dent in their 3-13-1 record this season.