Baseball Game Preview: South El Monte Eagles vs. El Monte Lions

For the first time this season, South El Monte will have a chance to prove themselves in a conference matchup. They are taking a road trip to take on the El Monte Lions at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday. El Monte took a loss in their last matchup and will be looking to turn the tables on South El Monte, who comes in off a win.

South El Monte took a loss when they played away from home on Friday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Monday. They came out on top against Temple City by a score of 5-1.

South El Monte got a great performance from Maximo Pineda as he pitched five innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits.

On the hitting side, Xavier Cordova was a standout: he got on base in all three of his plate appearances with three RBI and one triple. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in April of 2024. Christian Ortega was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 3-for-4.

Meanwhile, El Monte was not able to break out of their rough patch on Friday as the team picked up their 25th straight loss dating back to last season. They came up short against Duarte, falling 24-7. One positive for the Lions, at least, is that this was the most points they've scored all season.

Alex Aleman was cooking despite his team's loss, scoring two runs while getting on base in all three of his plate appearances. Geovanni Flores also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.

South El Monte's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 7-4. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.7 runs over those games. As for El Monte, their defeat dropped their record down to 0-7.

Everything went South El Monte's way against El Monte in their previous meeting back in April of 2024, as South El Monte made off with an 11-1 win. Will South El Monte repeat their success, or does El Monte has a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.