Banning is 5-0 against Verdugo Hills since March of 2015, and they'll have a chance to extend that success on Saturday. The Banning Pilots will take on the Verdugo Hills Dons at 3:00 p.m. The last five games Banning has played have been within two runs, so don't be surprised if it's a close one.
Banning is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 5-4 win over San Fernando. That's two games straight that Banning has won by just one run.
The team relied heavily on Phillip Melgoza, who scored a run while going 2-for-2. Chris Martinez was another key contributor, scoring a run while going 1-for-3.
Meanwhile, Verdugo Hills waltzed into their game on Thursday with four straight wins... but they left with five. They came out on top against the Unicorns by a score of 8-3. That's two games straight that Verdugo Hills has won by exactly five runs.
Verdugo Hills also got a great performance from Cooper Savage as he struck out eight batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits. Savage has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't pitched less than five innings in seven consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Justin McCubbin was excellent, scoring a run and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was David Castaneda, who scored a run while going 1-for-3.
Banning's victory bumped their record up to 16-13. As for Verdugo Hills, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won seven of their last eight matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 18-11 record this season.
Everything went Banning's way against Verdugo Hills when the teams last played back in May of 2021 as Banning made off with a 19-6 win. The rematch might be a little tougher for Banning since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
