Baseball Game Preview: Clairemont Chieftains vs. La Jolla Vikings

Clairemont is 0-5 against La Jolla since April of 2023 but things could change on Monday. The Chieftains will head out to take on the Vikings at 4:00 p.m. Clairemont is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 7.1 runs per game this season.

Clairemont's pitching crew heads into the contest hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Thursday. They put the hurt on Mission Bay with a sharp 8-0 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Chieftains.

The result came thanks to Christian Garcia's shutout, as he gave up just five hits and racked up 12 Ks. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in seven consecutive appearances.

Luis Murrieta

Runs (Career)

05/01/25 vs Mission Bay	3
04/21/25 vs Steele Canyon	2
04/18/25 vs Classical Academy	2
02/27/25 vs Castle Park	2
04/29/25 @ Mission Bay	1

At the plate, the team relied heavily on Luis Murrieta, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with three runs and one stolen base. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Colton Daudet, who got on base in all four of his plate appearances with one run and one RBI.

Clairemont always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .514. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Mission Bay only posted an OBP of .231.

Meanwhile, La Jolla had already won six in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 3.5 runs) and they went ahead and made it seven on Thursday. They came out on top against the Cavers by a score of 4-0. That's two games straight that the Vikings have won by exactly four runs.

Hank Hansen was a standout: he went 1-for-3 with one triple, one stolen base, and one run. Ryan Kestler was another key player, going 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double.

Clairemont's record is now 16-6. As for La Jolla, their record now sits at 15-9.

Clairemont came up short against La Jolla when the teams last played back in April of 2024, falling 5-2. Can the Chieftains avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.