The Hillcrest Trojans will venture away from home to challenge the Canyon Springs Cougars at 3:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Hillcrest's pitching crew has only allowed 3.3 runs per game this season, so Canyon Springs' hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Hillcrest fought the good fight in their extra-innings match against Rancho Christian on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Eagles by a score of 3-2. Having soared to a lofty 11 runs in the game before, the Trojans couldn't push the score so high this time.
Luke Mueller was cooking despite his team's loss, going 1-for-3 with one home run. Another player making a difference was Logan Broesel, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with one RBI.
Meanwhile, Canyon Springs was not the first on the board on Thursday, but they got there more often. They came out on top against Vista del Lago by a score of 5-2. The win continues a trend for the Cougars in their matchups with the Ravens: they've now won five in a row.
Jesse Lopez looked comfortable as he pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. The dominant performance also gave him a new career-high in strikeouts (four).
At the plate, Canyon Springs' victory was truly a team effort as five different players contributed at least one hit. One of them was David Valdez, who went 1-for-3 with one stolen base and one run. Joseph Ursulo also deserves some recognition as he scored his first run of the season.
Hillcrest moved to 12-6-1 with that loss, which also ended their three-game winning streak. As for Canyon Springs, their record now sits at 10-11.
Canyon Springs' pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Hillcrest hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .344. It's a different story for Canyon Springs, though, as they've only averaged .259. Will they be able to contain Hillcrest's hitters?
Hillcrest took their win against Canyon Springs in their previous meeting on Monday by a conclusive 11-0 score. Do the Trojans have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Cougars turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
