The Rancho Rams will venture away from home to square off against the Durango Trailblazers at 3:30 p.m. on Monday. Both teams are coming into the contest red-hot, with Rancho sitting on five straight wins and Durango on seven.
Rancho's pitching crew heads into the match hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Wednesday. Everything went their way against Western as they made off with an 11-0 victory. The result was nothing new for the Rams, who have now won seven games by seven runs or more so far this season.
Brady Paulson
| 03/19/25 @ Boulder City | 7 |
| 03/25/25 @ Silverado | 4 |
| 03/13/25 @ Southeast Career Tech | 2 |
| 04/09/25 @ Western | 1 |
| 03/06/25 vs Eldorado | 1 |
| + 1 more games |
Brady Paulson made a splash while hitting and pitching. He didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out seven over five innings pitched. He has become a key player for Rancho: the team is 3-1 when he allows at most one hit, but 7-11 otherwise. Paulson was also stellar in the batter's box, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while going 3-for-3. That's the most stolen bases he has posted since back in March of 2024.
Paulson wasn't the only one making solid contact as five players wound up with at least one hit. One of them was Jonathan Ramos, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 1-for-3. Rancho is 6-2 when Ramos posts two or more runs, but 4-10 otherwise. Another was Ronaldo Alvarez, who went 1-for-3 with two RBI.
Rancho hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. They are a perfect 6-0 when they post two or more strikeouts.
Meanwhile, Durango put their dominant pitcher on display in the team's fourth consecutive shutout on Friday. They put the hurt on Eldorado with a sharp 7-0 win. The result was nothing new for the Trailblazers, who have now won eight contests by six runs or more so far this season.
Eldorado's batters probably weren't too happy with Alexander Mercurius, who pitched a no hitter and racked up 13 Ks (he gave up a single walk). Mercurius has been consistent : he hasn't tossed less than five strikeouts in five consecutive appearances.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Carson Crosby, who scored two runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3. He has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jon Turner, who scored a run while going 1-for-1.
Rancho's record is now 10-12. As for Durango, their record now sits at 15-6.
Monday's matchup will be a test for both teams' pitchers. Rancho hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .319. However, it's not like Durango struggles in that department as they've averaged .340. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Rancho might still be hurting after the 10-2 loss they got from Durango when the teams last played back in April of 2024. Can the Rams avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
