The King's Academy Knights will take on the Valley Christian Warriors at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as King's Academy comes in on five and Valley Christian on four.
King's Academy's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They skirted past Hillsdale 1-0.
Not much got past Katia Nesper, who gave up just two hits and racked up nine Ks to keep Hillsdale off the board. Nesper has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two hits in 11 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, King's Academy's victory was truly a team effort as three different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Mia Bennette, who went 1-for-3 with one stolen base.
Meanwhile, after only two runs in their last contest, Valley Christian made sure to put some runs up on the board against Presentation on Friday. The Warriors put the hurt on the Panthers with a sharp 19-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Warriors, who have now won 13 games by six runs or more so far this season.
Melody Gonzales tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run and allowing only one hit while striking out 13 over five innings pitched. Those 13 strikeouts gave her a new career-high.
On the hitting side, Shyla Paredes was a standout: she fired off two home runs, four runs, and five RBI while going 2-for-3. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in April. Sia Marsh was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one home run, five RBI, and one stolen base.
Valley Christian always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .553. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Presentation only posted an OBP of .222.
King's Academy's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 14-7. Those road wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 0.0 runs on average over those games. As for Valley Christian, their victory bumped their record up to 19-5.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Monday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. King's Academy has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.5 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Valley Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 7 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
King's Academy suffered a grim 12-1 defeat to Valley Christian in their previous meeting back in March of 2024. Will the Knights have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the match for a full breakdown of the game, commentary, and other softball content.
