Baseball Game Preview: Escondido Cougars vs. San Dieguito Academy Mustangs

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Previous Games

03/04/23 - Home	4-3 W
04/20/21 - Away	2-12 L
03/04/19 - Away	0-1 L
03/25/17 - Away	19-1 W
04/15/16 - Home	9-4 W
+ 5 more games

Escondido has gone 8-2 against San Dieguito Academy recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Monday. The Cougars will face off against the Mustangs at 4:00 p.m. Escondido's pitching crew has only allowed 3.5 runs per game this season, so San Dieguito Academy's hitters will have their work cut out for them.

Escondido's usually-dominant pitching crew will be looking to make up for Friday's struggle, when Ramona hitters got past them. The Cougars came up short against the Bulldogs on Friday, falling 19-4. For those keeping track at home, that's the biggest defeat the Cougars have suffered since February 27, 2024.

Escondido saw five different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kaden Hermsen, who went 1-for-3 with one run and one RBI.

Meanwhile, winning is always nice, but doing so behind a season-high score is even better (just ask San Dieguito Academy). They put the hurt on Canyon Hills with a sharp 17-6 victory on Saturday. The win was some much needed relief for the Mustangs as it spelled an end to their seven-game losing streak.

Nathan Calm looked comfortable as he pitched two innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances.

At the plate, Aidan Needles was a standout: he got on base in four of his five plate appearances with three runs, one stolen base, and one RBI. Those three runs gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Ben Hastings, who got on base in all six of his plate appearances with two runs and one RBI.

Escondido's loss was their first in the league, dropping their league record down to 4-1 and their overall record down to 15-4. As for San Dieguito Academy, their record is now 5-16.

Escondido came out on top in a nail-biter against San Dieguito Academy in their previous matchup back in March of 2023, sneaking past 4-3. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Cougars since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.