Columbine had lost three straight on the road, but on Friday they dropped their record down to 6-13 to make it four. They came up short against the Arvada West Wildcats, falling 9-3. Unfortunately, that's the second time they've come up short against the Wildcats this season, as they also lost their prior matchup 8-2 on Wednesday.
Columbine saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Wyatt Saul, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
As for Arvada West, the win was the ninth in a row for them, bringing their record up to 16-2-1. Those victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.4 runs over those games.
On Arvada West's side, Luke Alonso was a major factor no matter where he played. He tossed 2.1 innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. What's more, Alonso posted three strikeouts, the most he's had since back in March. He was also big at the plate, going 2-for-4 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
In other pitching news, Kolten DeGroot looked comfortable as he struck out seven batters over four innings while giving up three earned runs off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive appearances.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Tate Deal, who went 1-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Holden Goodrich, who got on base in all three of his plate appearances with one run, one double, and one RBI.
We've got plenty of inter-league action coming up soon. Columbine will challenge rival Chatfield at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. Meanwhile, Arvada West is set to square off against their familiar foe Ralston Valley at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday.
