The Americas Trail Blazers will head out on the road to face off against the Del Valle Conquistadores at 6:30 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Del Valle will challenge a team with plenty of momentum: Americas extended their winning streak to five on Wednesday. The Trail Blazers blew past Hanks 16-4. That's two games straight that the Trail Blazers have won by exactly 12 runs.
Giselle Alcala made a splash no matter where she played. She pitched five innings while giving up four earned runs off seven hits. She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in ten consecutive appearances. She was even better at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run and three RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in February.
In other batting news, Americas got a massive performance out of Brianna Madrid, who went 2-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. That's the most runs Madrid has posted since back in February. Another player making a difference was Isabelle Garcia, who went 1-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs.
Americas always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .595. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Hanks only posted an OBP of .348.
Meanwhile, Del Valle got the win against El Dorado on Wednesday by a conclusive 13-3. Winning may never get old, but the Conquistadores sure are getting used to it with their seventh in a row.
Remi Barron spent all six innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned (and two unearned) runs on six hits.
On the hitting side, Mia Estrada was a standout: she went a perfect 4-for-4 with one home run, three runs, and two RBI. Valerie Hernandez was another key player, scoring two runs while getting on base in all four of her plate appearances.
Americas pushed their record up to 15-13 with the win, which was their fourth straight on the road. The road victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.8 runs on average over those games. As for Del Valle, their record now sits at 17-9-2.
Americas might still be hurting after the 12-2 loss they got from Del Valle in their previous matchup back in March. Can the Trail Blazers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
