The Desert Hills Thunder will head out on the road to square off against the Ridgeline Riverhawks at 4:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Ridgeline is hoping to do on Friday what Pine View couldn't on Thursday: put an end to Desert Hills' winning streak, which now stands at 14 games. Desert Hills never let Pine View onto the board and left with an 18-0 victory. 18 seems to be a good number for Desert Hills as the squad scooped up a win with the same number of runs in their previous game.
Lulu West made a splash while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out six batters over two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (and not a single walk). West has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive pitching appearances. West was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 1-for-1.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Hallee Heath, who went 3-for-3 with a home run, five RBI, and three runs. Jojo Sparks was another key contributor, going 1-for-2 with a home run, three RBI, and two runs.
Meanwhile, Ridgeline got the win against Logan on Tuesday by a conclusive 15-4.
Like Desert Hills, Ridgeline also got a great game from a two-way player: Brielle Gardiner. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out eight batters over 6.1 innings while giving up three earned (and one unearned) runs off three hits. Gardiner was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-4 with a home run, three RBI, and a double.
In other batting news, Ridgeline got a massive performance out of Adisyn Hansen, who scored three runs and stole three bases while going 2-for-4. Another player making a difference was Ellie Pond, who scored two runs and stole two bases while going 2-for-4.
Desert Hills' victory was their eighth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 20-2. As for Ridgeline, their record now sits at 18-1.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Desert Hills has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Ridgeline struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.8. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Desert Hills came up short against Ridgeline in their previous meeting back in March of 2023, falling 7-4. Can Desert Hills avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
