The Albuquerque Bulldogs will challenge the West Mesa Mustangs at 3:30 p.m. on Friday. Albuquerque is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 9.4 runs per game this season.
Albuquerque is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Atrisco Heritage Academy, who was ranked 18th at the time (Albuquerque was ranked 25th). The Bulldogs took an 8-5 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Jaguars on Tuesday. The Bulldogs have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Albuquerque saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Raquel Waldrop, who went 3-for-4 with one home run, two doubles, and two RBI. Luna Diaz was another, going 1-for-4 with one home run.
Meanwhile, West Mesa played in-conference for the first time on Tuesday and got just the result they were looking for. They were the clear victors by a 16-5 margin over Rio Grande. Considering the Mustangs have won nine contests by more than seven runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Ellie Padilla was incredible, going a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three stolen bases, and five RBI. She has been hot, having posted at least one stolen base the last six times she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Trinity 'Toots' Bazan, who got on base in all four of her plate appearances with four RBI, two runs, and one double.
West Mesa was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .500. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .379 or higher in nine consecutive matchups.
West Mesa's win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 9-13. As for Albuquerque, their loss dropped their record down to 11-8.
West Mesa's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Albuquerque has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9 hits per game. It's a different story for West Mesa, though, as they've been averaging 12.2 hits. Given Albuquerque's sizable advantage in that area, the Mustangs will need to find a way to close that gap.
Albuquerque took their victory against West Mesa when the teams last played last Wednesday by a conclusive 18-11 score. Will the Bulldogs repeat their success, or do the Mustangs have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
