The Citrus Valley Blackhawks will be playing in front of their home fans against the Cajon Cowboys at 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday. Citrus Valley is strutting in with some hitting muscle, as they've averaged 7.5 runs per game this season.
Last Saturday, Citrus Valley sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-3 win over Beaumont.
Kade Finazzo spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered only one earned (and two unearned) runs on one hit and racked up eight Ks. He has been nothing but reliable: he hasn't pitched less than six innings in four consecutive pitching appearances.
At the plate, Citrus Valley saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Nathan Castillo, who scored a run while going 1-for-2. The team also got some help courtesy of Angel Perez, who went 1-for-1 with a double and an RBI.
Meanwhile, after a string of four wins, Cajon's good fortune finally ran out on Thursday. They fell just short of Redlands East Valley by a score of 3-2. Having soared to a lofty 14 runs in the game before, Cajon couldn't push the score so high this time.
Issac Fabela was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: he struck out 14 batters over 6.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits.
On the hitting side, Cajon saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Jean-Pierre Herd, who went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
Even though they lost, Cajon didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with 15 strikeouts. That's the most strikeouts they've managed all season.
Citrus Valley is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine games, which provided a nice bump to their 12-7 record this season. As for Cajon, their loss ended a three-game streak of away wins and brought them to 9-8.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both teams have some strikeout artists on the roster. Citrus Valley has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.1 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Cajon struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.4. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Citrus Valley took their victory against Cajon in their previous matchup back in March by a conclusive 11-3. Does Citrus Valley have another victory up their sleeve, or will Cajon turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
