The Venice Gondoliers are taking a road trip to challenge the El Segundo Eagles at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Venice is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 9.4 runs per game this season.
Venice's usually-dominant pitching crew will be looking to make up for Saturday's struggle, when Harvard-Westlake hitters got past them. The Gondoliers lost 14-3 to the Wolverines on Saturday. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest loss the Gondoliers have suffered since May 8, 2024.
Venice saw six different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Khalia Rodriguez, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-2.
Meanwhile, El Segundo waltzed into their contest last Friday with 11 straight wins... but they left with 12. Their pitcher stepped up to hand the Tartars a 1-0 shutout. Give some credit to the fans of both teams: the last four times they've met, the home team has come away the winner.
Not much got past Jacy Lindsay, who gave up just five hits to keep Torrance off the board. Lindsay has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in six consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Sienna Mayer, who scored a run and stole two bases while going 2-for-3.
El Segundo pushed their record up to 16-3 with the victory, which was their sixth straight at home. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.0 run on average over those games. As for Venice, their defeat was their first of the season and makes their record 11-1.
Monday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Venice hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .453. However, it's not like El Segundo struggles in that department as they've averaged .320. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Venice was able to grind out a solid victory over El Segundo in their previous matchup back in March of 2023, winning 4-1. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Gondoliers since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
