Clovis West is 2-8 against Central since April of 2019 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Tuesday. The Golden Eagles will host the Grizzlies at 3:30 p.m. The two teams have allowed few runs on average (Clovis West 3.2, Central 1.4) so any runs scored will be well earned.
Clovis West's usually-dominant pitching crew will be looking to make up for Friday's struggle, when Clovis North hitters got past them. The Golden Eagles fell 11-7 to the Broncos on Friday.
Haley Rangel was cooking despite her team's loss, going 3-for-4 with two runs and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Central waltzed into their match on Friday with 14 straight wins... but they left with 15. They were the clear victors by a 14-3 margin over the Cougars. The result was nothing new for the Grizzlies, who have now won seven contests by six runs or more so far this season.
Kaia Galaviz was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She struck out eight batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off only two hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't tossed less than seven strikeouts in 17 consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with two RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March.
In other batting news, Central got a massive performance out of Kiki Diaz, who got on base in three of her four plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. That's the most runs Diaz has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Ella Bakholdin, who went 2-for-4 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI.
Central was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .517. That's the best batting average they've posted all season.
Central pushed their record up to 19-1-1 with the victory, which was their third straight on the road. The road wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.7 runs over those games. As for Clovis West, their defeat dropped their record down to 14-7-1.
Clovis West couldn't quite finish off Central when the teams last played on April 4th and fell 6-4. Will the Golden Eagles 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 softball content.
