Baseball Preview: Gilbert Christian Knights vs. Valley Christian Trojans
Gilbert Christian is 1-6 against Valley Christian since April of 2021 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Thursday. The Gilbert Christian Knights will be playing at home against the Valley Christian Trojans at 6:30 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Gilbert Christian's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Monday. They were the clear victor by a 15-0 margin over American Leadership Academy - Ironwood. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for Gilbert Christian considering their one-run performance the match before.
Sam Webb was incredible, scoring four runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-3. He is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now stolen at least one in the last four games he's played. Zack Linker was another key contributor, going 2-for-4 with five RBI and a run.
Meanwhile, everything went Valley Christian's way against Benjamin Franklin on Wednesday as Valley Christian made off with a 13-3 win.
Jaxen Maxey and Dylan Suzuki dominated on the mound. Maxey tossed an inning while giving up no earned runs or hits, while Suzuki pitched three innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits.
At the plate, Carson Grier was a standout: he scored two runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Berkeley Kaiser, who went 2-for-5 with two stolen bases, four RBI, and a run.
Gilbert Christian has been performing well recently as they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 17-5 record this season. As for Valley Christian, their victory bumped their record up to 21-1.
Thursday's game will be a test for both team's pitchers. Gilbert Christian hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .370. However, it's not like Valley Christian struggles in that department as they've averaged .417. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Gilbert Christian came up short against Valley Christian in their previous matchup last Monday, falling 13-9. A big factor in that loss was the dominant performance of Valley Christian's Caleb Danzeisen, who fired off two home runs, three runs, and three RBI while going 3-for-4. Now that Gilbert Christian knows the damage he can cause, will they be able to stop him this time? There's only one way to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
