Fruita Monument has enjoyed the comforts of home their last seven games, but now they'll head out on the road. They will head out to face off against the Durango Demons at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Both are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
On Wednesday, everything went Fruita Monument's way against Palisade as Fruita Monument made off with a 12-2 victory. The result was nothing new for the Wildcats, who have now won nine matchups by six runs or more so far this season.
Lacie Rodabaugh was a major factor no matter where she played. She struck out ten batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off three hits (and only one walk). She has been nothing but reliable on the mound: she hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing a base while going 1-for-3.
In other batting news, Carmella Fortunato was a standout: she scored two runs and stole two bases while going 3-for-4. Angelina Fortunato was another key player, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 3-for-4.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Fruita Monument didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with ten strikeouts. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Palisade only tossed three.
Meanwhile, Durango hadn't done well against Rifle recently (they were 0-9 in their previous nine matchups), but they didn't let the past get in their way on Friday. Durango blew past Rifle 11-3. The win was some much needed relief for the Demons as it spelled an end to their three-game losing streak.
Abigail Gordon spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered just two earned (and one unearned) runs on ten hits and racked up six Ks.
On the hitting side, Molly Best was incredible, firing off two home runs, four runs, and four RBI while going 4-for-4. What's more, she also racked up four hits, the mostshe's had since back in August. Kaitlyn Downey was another key player, scoring three runs while going 2-for-3.
Fruita Monument pushed their record up to 14-5 with the victory, which was their eighth straight at home. As for Durango, their win bumped their record up to 8-9.
Durango's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Fruita Monument has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.9 hits per game. It's a different story for Durango, though, as they've been averaging 11. Given Fruita Monument's sizable advantage in that area, Durango will need to find a way to close that gap.
Fruita Monument took their victory against Durango when the teams last played back in October of 2023 by a conclusive 17-0. The rematch might be a little tougher for Fruita Monument since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
