The Hozho Academy Wolves are taking a road trip to take on the Loving Falcons at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday. Both teams are coming into the match red-hot, with Hozho Academy sitting on eight straight victories and Loving on 17.
Hozho Academy is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Wednesday. They skirted past Lordsburg 12-11. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Wolves have posted since April 4th.
Iris Albert was incredible, going a perfect 5-for-5 with three RBI, two runs, and two doubles. That's the most doubles she has posted over her last 13 contests. Mika Jai was another key player, going 3-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
They weren't the only ones making solid contact: Hozho Academy kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 22 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least ten hits in eight consecutive games.
Meanwhile, Loving never let their opponents score on Wednesday. They were the clear victors by a 24-0 margin over Capitan. Considering the Falcons have won 17 matches by more than six runs this season, Wednesday's blowout was nothing new.
Capitan's batters probably weren't too happy with Braylee Hunt, who pitched a no hitter and racked up eight Ks (she gave up a single walk). Hunt has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in 11 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Sierra Rodriguez, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, five stolen bases, and three runs. The team also got some help courtesy of Olyse Gonzalez, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with three stolen bases, two runs, and two RBI.
Hozho Academy's victory was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 23-5. The road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 19.0 runs over those games. As for Loving, their record now sits at 20-6.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Wednesday. Hozho Academy hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.8 home runs per game. However, it's not like Loving struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.5 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Hozho Academy might still be hurting after the 14-3 loss they got from Loving when the teams last played back in April. Can the Wolves avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
