The Centennial Bulldogs will square off against the Palo Verde Panthers at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
Centennial is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They walked away with a 6-1 victory over Arbor View.
Lily Fournier spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on six hits and racked up six Ks. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in 19 consecutive appearances.
Sloane Merrell
| 05/09/25 vs Arbor View | 4 |
| 04/18/24 vs Bishop Gorman | 3 |
| 03/26/24 vs Arbor View | 3 |
| 05/07/25 vs Shadow Ridge | 2 |
| 04/29/25 vs Liberty | 2 |
At the plate, Sloane Merrell was incredible, going a perfect 4-for-4 with two runs, one double, and one RBI. Those four hits gave her a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Campbell Cole, who went 2-for-4 with one run, one double, and one RBI.
Centennial was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .375. They are a perfect 7-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Palo Verde put another one in the bag on Thursday to keep their perfect season alive. They came out on top against Centennial by a score of 8-5.
Ava Koenig was a major factor no matter where she played. She struck out nine batters over five innings while giving up three earned runs off four hits. Koenig was also big at the plate, going 1-for-2 with one double and one RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Taylor Johns, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Mya Bartlett was another key player, going a perfect 2-for-2 with one triple and one RBI.
Palo Verde pushed their record up to 21-0 with the win, which was their 15th straight at home dating back to last season. Those home victories came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 1.5 runs on average over those games. As for Centennial, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven games. That's provided a nice bump to their 18-12 record this season.
The batters for both teams will have to hit smart on Saturday as both have some strikeout artists on the roster. Centennial has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 7.7 strikeouts per game. However, it's not like Palo Verde struggles in that department as they've been averaging 7.1 strikeouts. Considering how easily both teams rack up Ks, the hitters on both teams better bring their A-game into this one.
Centennial couldn't quite get it done against Palo Verde in their previous meeting on Thursday as they fell 8-5. Can the Bulldogs avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
