Steele Canyon hasn't had much luck against Christian recently, but that could start to change on Wednesday. The Steele Canyon Cougars will square off against the Christian Patriots at 3:30 p.m.
Steele Canyon is headed into Wednesday's contest looking for a big change in momentum after dropping their 24th straight game dating back to last season on Monday. They took a 5-1 hit to the loss column at the hands of Coronado.
Steele Canyon got a good showing from Seth Stienburgor, who pitched four innings while giving up just one earned (and two unearned) runs off five hits.
At the plate, Steele Canyon saw three different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Julian Cervantes, who scored a run while going 1-for-2. Jonah Arens also deserves some recognition as he got his first hit of the season.
Meanwhile, it may have taken nine innings to finish the job, but Christian ultimately got the result they hoped for on Monday. They had just enough and edged out West Hills 8-7. The Patriots haven't had any issues with the Wolf Pack recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive win against them.
Benji Molina and Maximus Villalva did most of the damage at the plate: Molina went 2-for-5 with one home run, three RBI, and one double, while Villalva scored three runs and stole a base while going 3-for-4. That's the most RBI Molina has posted since back in April of 2024. Another player making a difference was Braeden Casey, who scored a run and stole a base while going 2-for-5.
Christian 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 ten hits in four consecutive matches dating back to last season.
Steele Canyon's loss dropped their record down to 0-4. As for Christian, their record now sits at 3-0.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Wednesday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Steele Canyon has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Christian struggles in that department as they've been averaging 8.3 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Steele Canyon couldn't quite get it done against Christian in their previous meeting back in February of 2024 as they fell 8-3. Can Steele Canyon avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
