Highland is on a four-game streak of home wins, while Quartz Hill is on a three-game streak of away wins: one of those streaks is about to end. The Bulldogs will welcome the Royals at 3:15 p.m. on Thursday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Highland is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. Everything went their way against Lancaster on Tuesday as they made off with a 14-3 win. The victory continues a trend for the Bulldogs in their matchups with the Eagles: they've now won three in a row.
Alaina Diehl was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in five consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-2 with one triple, two RBI, and one run.
In other batting news, Highland let Evalina Chavez and Bella Williams run wild. Chavez went 3-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI, while Williams went 3-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. That's the most RBI Chavez has posted since back in March. Another player making a difference was Kenzie Martinez, who went 3-for-4 with four runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Highland was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .440. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Lancaster only posted a batting average of .111.
Meanwhile, Quartz Hill won against Eastside on Thursday with 13 runs and they decided to stick to that run total again on Tuesday. The Royals never let Antelope Valley get on the board and left with a 13-0 win.
Nina Sepulveda was a standout: she went 3-for-4 with one home run, four RBI, and one double. The team also got some help courtesy of Emily Cowan, who went a perfect 4-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Quartz Hill's victory bumped their record up to 17-6. As for Highland, their win bumped their record up to 16-7.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Thursday. Highland hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.8 home runs per game. However, it's not like Quartz Hill struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.7 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Highland couldn't quite finish off Quartz Hill in their previous meeting on Wednesday and fell 3-1. Will the Bulldogs have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
