Sunrise Mountain has gone a perfect 10-0 against Kellis recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Wednesday. The Mustangs are taking a road trip to challenge the Cougars at 3:45 p.m. Sunrise Mountain is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.7 runs per game this season.
Sunrise Mountain took a loss when they played away from home on Wednesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They put the hurt on Ironwood with a sharp 15-0 victory. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Mustangs considering their one-run performance the game before.
Gunnar Thomas was a major factor no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, keeping things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out seven over five innings pitched. Thomas was also big at the plate, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two RBI and one double.
Brandon Newkirk
| 03/12/25 @ Arizona College Prep | 4 |
| 04/17/25 vs Ironwood | 3 |
| 04/15/25 @ Ironwood | 3 |
| 03/18/25 vs Lutheran | 2 |
| 03/04/25 @ Paradise Valley | 2 |
| + 8 more games |
In other batting news, Sunrise Mountain let Brandon Newkirk and Jake Pacimeo run wild. Newkirk got on base in all three of his plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs, while Pacimeo went a perfect 2-for-2 with three RBI, one run, and one double. Newkirk is becoming a predictor of Sunrise Mountain's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 9-10 when he doesn't). Noah Soto was another key player, going 2-for-4 with three RBI, one stolen base, and one run.
Sunrise Mountain always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .618. The last time their OBP was this high was back in April of 2024.
Meanwhile, Kellis was not able to break out of their rough patch on Tuesday as the team picked up their 13th straight loss. They lost 12-4 to Ironwood.
Kellis saw four different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Johnny Celaya, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with two RBI and one double. Diego Banda also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Sunrise Mountain's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 16-10. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.3 runs over those games. As for Kellis, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-17.
Kellis' pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Sunrise Mountain hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .315. It's a different story for Kellis, though, as they've only averaged .225. Will they be able to contain Sunrise Mountain's hitters?
Everything went Sunrise Mountain's way against Kellis in their previous matchup on April 2nd, as Sunrise Mountain made off with a 21-0 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Mustangs since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
