The Verrado Vipers will square off against the Lake Havasu Knights at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
On Thursday, Verrado sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 4-3 victory over Sunrise Mountain.
Colton Zacher
| 03/06/25 @ Sunrise Mountain | 11 |
| 02/27/25 vs Deer Valley | 9 |
| 04/16/24 @ Lake Havasu | 3 |
| 04/04/24 vs Millennium | 2 |
| 03/11/24 vs Campo Verde | 2 |
Colton Zacher made a splash no matter where he played. He looked comfortable on the mound, striking out 11 batters over 6.2 innings while giving up three earned runs off only two hits. The dominant performance gave him a new career-high in strikeouts. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Ethan Williams, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-5. Ronal Urquiola also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask Lake Havasu). They never let North get on the board and left with a 20-0 win on Tuesday. Considering the Knights have won four contests by more than seven runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Like Verrado, Lake Havasu also got a great game from a two-way player: Carson Lockman. He kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits while striking out 11 over four innings pitched. What's more, Lockman gave up only zero walks, the fewest he's had since back in April of 2024. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while getting on base in all four of his plate appearances.
In other batting news, Brock Cross and Braden Towning did most of the damage at the plate: Cross went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run and four RBI, while Towning went a perfect 4-for-4 with three runs and four RBI. Towning is becoming a predictor of Lake Havasu's success: when he posts at least two runs the team is undefeated (and 1-2 when he doesn't). Colton Rohn was another key player, going 2-for-4 with four RBI, one run, and one double.
Lake Havasu kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 16 hits. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post 11 or more hits.
Lake Havasu is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 4-2 record this season. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 12.3 runs. Verrado now has a winning record of 3-2-1.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Verrado has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 10 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Lake Havasu struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Verrado couldn't quite finish off Lake Havasu when the teams last played back in April of 2024 and fell 8-6. Will Verrado have more luck at home instead of on the road? Come back here after the game to get an analysis of the match and other baseball content.
