The Cactus Shadows Falcons will head out on the road to challenge the St. Mary's Knights at 7:00 p.m. on Monday. Cactus Shadows' pitching crew has only allowed 2.2 runs per game this season, so St. Mary's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
On Thursday, Cactus Shadows got the win against Marcos de Niza by a conclusive 17-2. Considering the Falcons have won 14 contests by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Jeremy Larson looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out six over four innings pitched. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than one walk in five consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Henry Verhamme and Keyen Marquez did most of the damage at the plate: Verhamme scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-3, while Marquez went 1-for-2 with one home run and three RBI. Another player making a difference was Carter Brown, who scored two runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Meanwhile, St. Mary's entered their game against Mesquite on Thursday without any home losses, but there's a first time for everything. The Knights took a 9-5 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Wildcats.
Luis Mejia was cooking despite his team's loss, going 3-for-4 with one home run, two runs, and one stolen base.
The win made it two in a row for Cactus Shadows and bumps their season record up to 19-2-1. The victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 16.0 runs over those games. As for St. Mary's, their loss was their first in the region, dropping their region record down to 5-1 and their overall record down to 13-7.
St. Mary's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Monday. Cactus Shadows has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9.1 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for St. Mary's, though, as they've been averaging only 4.1 strikeouts. Will Cactus Shadows keep running through batters, or will the Knights buck the trend?
Cactus Shadows might still be hurting after the 11-1 defeat they got from St. Mary's in their previous matchup back in April of 2018. Can the Falcons avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
