The Los Lunas Tigers will head out on the road to square off against the Atrisco Heritage Academy Jaguars at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Los Lunas will aim to continue their three-game streak of scoring more runs each match than the last.
Los Lunas is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of New Mexico's top teams: Albuquerque, who was ranked 24th at the time (Los Lunas was ranked 12th). The Tigers put the hurt on the Bulldogs with a sharp 18-8 win on Friday. The result was nothing new for the Tigers, who have now won seven contests by six runs or more so far this season.
Los Lunas got a massive performance out of Kelsie DeGraaf, who scored four runs and stole three bases while going 5-for-5. That's the most stolen bases DeGraaf has posted over her last 12 games. Another player making a difference was Natalie Madrid, who scored four runs and stole a base while going 4-for-4.
Los Lunas was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .585. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .323 or higher in seven consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Atrisco Heritage Academy waltzed into their contest on Tuesday with three straight wins... but they left with four. They walked away with an 8-5 victory over the Bulldogs.
Melanie MacIas made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, she struck out eight batters over seven innings while giving up four earned (and one unearned) runs off seven hits. MacIas was also big at the plate, going 2-for-3 with one home run, three RBI, and two runs. She has been hot recently, having posted three or more RBI the last three times she's played.
In other batting news, Aalyiah Chavez was incredible, going 1-for-3 with one home run and three RBI. Larissa Morinia was another key player, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3.
Los Lunas is on a roll lately: they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 14-6 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 12.0 runs over those games. As for Atrisco Heritage Academy, their record now sits at 15-5.
Thursday's match might come down to which pitcher can control the ball better. Los Lunas has hit smart this season, having averaged an OBP of .463. However, it's not like Atrisco Heritage Academy struggles in that department as they've averaged .494. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Los Lunas couldn't quite finish off Atrisco Heritage Academy in their previous meeting two weeks ago and fell 6-4. Can the Tigers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
