The ALA - West Foothills Guardians will head out to face off against the Highland Prep Honey Badgers at 3:45 p.m. on Thursday. The teams are on pretty different trajectories at the moment (ALA - West Foothills has three straight wins, Highland Prep has eight straight losses), but none of that matters once you're on the field.
ALA - West Foothills is headed in fresh off scoring the most runs they have all season. They put the hurt on Tonopah Valley with a sharp 23-0 victory on Tuesday. Considering the Guardians have won 11 contests by more than nine runs this season, Tuesday's blowout was nothing new.
Ava LaHair
| 04/15/25 vs Tonopah Valley | 2 |
| 04/11/25 vs Parker | 0 |
| 04/08/25 @ Yuma Catholic | 2 |
| 04/03/25 @ Kingman | 2 |
Ava LaHair was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She pitched three innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring a run while going 1-for-2.
In other batting news, ALA - West Foothills got a massive performance out of Olivia Gonzalez, who scored four runs and stole four bases while getting on base in three of her four plate appearances. That's the most stolen bases Gonzalez has posted since back in March of 2024. Madelyn Caines was another key player, scoring three runs and stealing three bases while going 1-for-3.
ALA - West Foothills was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .471. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .444 or higher in three consecutive matches.
Meanwhile, Monday just wasn't the day for Highland Prep's offense. They came up short against River Valley on Monday, falling 21-0. Having soared to a lofty 12 runs in the game before, the Honey Badgers' shutout was a dramatic turnaround.
ALA - West Foothills' win was their seventh straight at home, which pushed their record up to 13-7. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 16.0 runs over those games. As for Highland Prep, their defeat dropped their record down to 3-9.
Highland Prep's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: ALA - West Foothills has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.2 hits per game. It's a different story for Highland Prep, though, as they've been averaging 14.6 hits. Given ALA - West Foothills' sizable advantage in that area, the Honey Badgers will need to find a way to close that gap.
ALA - West Foothills took their win against Highland Prep when the teams last played back in March by a conclusive 14-1 score. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Guardians since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
