The Prairie View Thunderhawks will venture away from home to challenge the Fruita Monument Wildcats at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
If Prairie View beats Fruita Monument with seven runs on Saturday, it's going to be the team's new lucky number: they've won their past two matches with that exact score. Prairie View beat Grand Junction on Friday by the very same score they won with in their prior game: 7-4. The win continues a trend for the Thunderhawks in their matchups with the Tigers: they've now won four in a row.
Preston Miller made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out six batters over two innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and not a single walk). Miller was also big at the plate, going 1-for-3 with one home run.
In other batting news, Noah Hernandez was incredible, scoring three runs and stealing a base while going 4-for-4. That's the most runs he has posted since back in April of 2024.
The home team had won the previous three meetings between Fruita Monument and Rampart, and Fruita Monument kept the tradition alive. Fruita Monument came out on top in a nail-biter against Rampart on Friday, sneaking past 8-6. That's two games straight that the Wildcats have won by exactly two runs.
Like Prairie View, Fruita Monument also got a great game from a two-way player: Blake Elsberry. He struck out eight batters over five innings while giving up just two earned (and one unearned) runs off three hits. Elsberry was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 3-for-3.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Gavin Cardoza, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI. Another player making a difference was Josh Weaver, who scored two runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Fruita Monument pushed their record up to 2-0 with the victory, which was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 6.6 runs over those games. As for Prairie View, their record is now 2-0.
Everything went Prairie View's way against Fruita Monument in their previous matchup back in March of 2024, as Prairie View made off with a 6-0 win. Will Prairie View repeat their success, or does Fruita Monument have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
