The Thunderbird Titans will face off against the Marcos de Niza Padres at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Thunderbird barely beat Dysart the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. Thunderbird was the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over Dysart on Thursday. The Titans might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won four contests by eight runs or more this season.
Evan Kolesar was incredible, scoring a run and stealing a base while going 2-for-2. The team also got some help courtesy of Hunter Donathan, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one triple.
Thunderbird always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .594. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Dysart only posted an OBP of .304.
Meanwhile, Marcos de Niza had already won two in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 10 runs) and they went ahead and made it three on Tuesday. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Coyotes a 4-0 shutout. The four-run effort marked the Padres' lowest-scoring match of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Marcos de Niza's win was truly a team effort as seven different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was Jesus Valles, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two stolen bases. The dominant performance gave Valles a new career-high in stolen bases.
Marcos de Niza's victory was their fifth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 3-2. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.4 runs over those games. As for Thunderbird, their win bumped their record up to 4-2.
Friday's game might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Thunderbird has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .492. However, it's not like Marcos de Niza struggles in that department as they've averaged .464. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Everything went Thunderbird's way against Marcos de Niza in their previous meeting back in March of 2022, as Thunderbird made off with an 11-1 victory. Will Thunderbird repeat their success, or does Marcos de Niza have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
