Valor Christian is on a six-game streak of home wins, while Arvada West is on a five-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Eagles will welcome the Wildcats at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both come into the game bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Valor Christian barely beat Lakewood the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Eagles put the hurt on the Tigers with a sharp 12-2 win on Wednesday.
Owen Schermerhorn
| 04/01/25 vs Regis Jesuit | 2 |
| 04/24/25 vs Bear Creek | 1 |
Owen Schermerhorn looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. He also tossed no walks, which is notable because Valor Christian is 3-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 8-9 otherwise.
On the hitting side, Ryan Amerman was incredible, going a perfect 2-for-2 with two stolen bases and three runs. Those two stolen bases gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Trystan Chadwick, who went 1-for-2 with two runs, one double, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, Arvada West hadn't done well against Ralston Valley recently (they were 1-8 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Saturday. The Wildcats walked away with an 8-5 victory over the Mustangs.
Beau Friesen and Brayden Reiner were major factors no matter where they played. Throwing, Friesen tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs off three hits. Meanwhile, Reiner struck out 11 batters over five innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off five hits (and not a single walk). He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in four consecutive appearances. At the plate, Friesen went 2-for-4 with two runs and one double, while Reiner went 3-for-5 with three RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Keegan Millikan, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Luke Alonso, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI.
Arvada West kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 13 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in seven consecutive matchups.
Valor Christian is on a roll lately: they've won nine of their last ten contests. That's provided a massive bump to their 11-10 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.2 runs over those games. As for Arvada West, their victory bumped their record up to 17-2-1.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Valor Christian hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.4 home runs per game. However, it's not like Arvada West struggles in that department as they've been averaging an even more impressive 0.8 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Valor Christian skirted past Arvada West 4-2 in their previous meeting back in April of 2024. Do the Eagles have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Wildcats turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
