Mountain Pointe is on a nine-game streak of home losses dating back to last season, and Maricopa a four-game streak of away losses also dating back to last season. However, someone's due for a change in luck on Friday. The Mountain Pointe Pride will be playing in front of their home fans against the Maricopa Rams at 3:45 p.m. Mountain Pointe has given up an average of 8.5 runs per game this season, but Friday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Chaparral hit Mountain Pointe with a four-run fifth inning on Thursday, which goes a long way in explaining the final result. The Pride came up short against the Firebirds, falling 13-2.
Mark Delgado made the most of his time in the batter's box despite the final result and went a perfect 1-for-1 with one home run. That hit marked the first that he has got this season.
Meanwhile, Maricopa fought the good fight in their extra-innings matchup against Cholla on Thursday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Chargers by a score of 13-12. Even though they lost, the Rams' still made a splash at the plate and bumped their average scoring up to 6.2 runs per game (they're now ranked -1th in scoring overall).
Travis Varela was cooking despite his team's loss, going 4-for-5 with two stolen bases, one run, and one RBI. He has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played. Another player making a difference was Mason Kieber, who went 2-for-3 with two RBI and one run.
Mountain Pointe's loss dropped their record down to 0-6. As for Maricopa, their defeat dropped their record down to an identical 0-6.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Friday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Mountain Pointe has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.3 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Maricopa struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.2 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Mountain Pointe skirted past Maricopa 4-3 in their previous meeting back in April of 2025. Do the Pride have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Rams turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
