Softball Game Preview: Paradise Valley Trojans vs. North Mustangs

The Paradise Valley Trojans will square off against the North Mustangs at 3:45 p.m. on Thursday. Paradise Valley is looking for their season's first win.

Monday just wasn't the day for Paradise Valley's offense. They lost 15-0 to Buckeye on Monday. Having soared to a lofty ten runs in the game before, the Trojans' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.

Paradise Valley saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Aliyah Anderson, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with one double. That hit was Anderson's first of the season.

Meanwhile, North won against Carl Hayden Community on Tuesday with 15 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Thursday. North put the hurt on Carl Hayden Community with a sharp 15-5 victory. The Mustangs might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five matchups by ten runs or more this season.

Solis Coker spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and three unearned) runs on two hits and racked up ten Ks. She has been consistent : she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in seven consecutive appearances.

On the hitting side, Ariana Velasquez was a standout: she went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one triple. Those three hits gave her a new career-high. Natalie Figueroa was another key player, going 3-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and one triple.

North kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. That's a new trend for them: they were averaging 4.8 hits per game earlier this season, but in their last 15 contests they've averaged 10.2.

North is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 6-8 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.5 runs over those games. Paradise Valley's defeat dropped their record down to 0-8.