The Santa Clara Bruins will square off against the West Valley Eagles at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Both teams are coming into the game red-hot, with Santa Clara sitting on 19 straight victories and West Valley on four.
Santa Clara is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Tuesday. They skirted past Oakland Tech 10-9.
Jonathan Young looked comfortable as he tossed three innings while giving up just one earned run off three hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in 14 consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Andrew Traffas was excellent, going 1-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Meanwhile, it may have taken ten innings to finish the job, but West Valley ultimately got the result they hoped for on Tuesday. They came out on top in a nail-biter against Arcata, sneaking past 9-8. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest win the Eagles have posted since April 29th.
West Valley got a massive performance out of Degan Palos, who got on base in four of his six plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. That's the most runs Palos has posted since back in April. Gunner Church was another key player, going 3-for-6 with two runs, one triple, and one RBI.
West Valley kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 14 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now got at least nine hits in three consecutive matches.
Santa Clara's victory was their 15th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 28-3. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.9 runs over those games. As for West Valley, their record now sits at 23-4.
Thursday's contest might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Santa Clara has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .500. However, it's not like West Valley struggles in that department as they've averaged .472. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
