The Verrado Vipers will square off against the Desert Mountain Wolves at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Verrado comes in on nine and Desert Mountain on 24.
Verrado is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They walked away with a 5-1 win over Notre Dame Prep.
Jill Ryan spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered a run (which was unearned) on six hits. She has been consistent: she hasn't given up more than one earned run in eight consecutive appearances.
At the plate, the team relied heavily on Jaiden Stell, who went 2-for-3 with one home run and two RBI. Another player making a difference was Sanaa Holliday, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one double.
Meanwhile, Desert Mountain got the win against Willow Canyon on Tuesday by a conclusive 10-3. The Wolves might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won 16 matchups by six runs or more this season.
Lilly 'Goose' Goodwin was a major factor no matter where she played. She struck out 15 batters over seven innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off eight hits. Goodwin was also big at the plate, getting on base in all four of her plate appearances with two RBI and one double.
In other batting news, Zoe Horning was incredible, going 3-for-4 with four RBI, one stolen base, and one run. Those four RBI gave her a new career-high. Avery Gehrke was another key player, going 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double.
Desert Mountain 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 eight hits in eight consecutive contests.
Desert Mountain's victory was their 24th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 27-1-1. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.2 runs on average over those games. As for Verrado, their victory bumped their record up to 27-4.
Both Verrado and Desert Mountain just can't seem to miss. The Vipers have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 10.8 hits per game. However, it's not like Desert Mountain struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 3 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Verrado came up short against Desert Mountain in their previous matchup back in March, falling 3-0. Can the Vipers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
