Baseball Recap: Thursday's Victory Is Needles' 17th in Last 20 Outings

Mustangs

Margin (Wins)

04/23/25 @ GV Christian	18
04/01/25 @ Laughlin	16
03/21/25 vs Awaken Christian	16
04/23/25 vs GV Christian	15
04/01/25 @ Laughlin	15

Needles had already proven themselves in the regular season and they didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. Their pitchers stepped up to hand the Lincoln County Lynx an 11-0 shutout on Thursday. Considering the Mustangs have won 14 contests by more than nine runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.

Tyler Wilson and Brayden Baca made a big impact while hitting and pitching. On the mound, Wilson tossed two innings while giving up no earned runs or hits. Meanwhile, Baca struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit (and only one walk). That's the most strikeouts he has posted since back in March. At the plate, Wilson went a perfect 2-for-2 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run, while Baca went 1-for-3 with three RBI, one triple, and one run. That triple marked the first that Baca has hit this season.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Gabe Rodriquez, who went 1-for-2 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one RBI. He is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as he's now snagged at least one in each of the last four games he's played. Another player making a difference was Holden Jones, who went 1-for-3 with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.

Needles hit smart and finished the game with only two strikeouts. The team has now struck out at least four batters in seven consecutive matchups.

Needles is on a roll lately: they've won 17 of their last 20 games. That's provided a nice bump to their 19-8-1 record this season. Those wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.2 runs over those games. As for Lincoln County, they moved to 9-13 with that defeat, which also ended their four-game winning streak.

Needles and Lincoln County are set to take part in some playoff action in their next matches. The Mustangs will take on Lake Mead Christian Academy at 12:30 p.m. on Friday. The Eagles will roll in looking for their 12th straight victory, something Needles surely won't give up without a fight. As for Lincoln County, they will square off against White Pine at 10:00 a.m. on Friday. The Lynx are facing the Bobcats at the right time seeing as the Bobcats are stuck on a five-game losing streak.