The Verrado Vipers will face off against the Youngker Roughriders at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. The two teams are sauntering into the matchup backed by comfortable wins in their prior games.
Youngker will challenge a team with plenty of momentum: Verrado extended their winning streak to three on Thursday. The Vipers' pitcher stepped up to hand Desert Edge a 10-0 shutout. That's two games straight that the Vipers have won by exactly ten runs.
Kyan Sims
| 03/12/26 vs Desert Edge | 9 |
| 03/05/26 vs Sunrise Mountain | 6 |
| 03/25/25 @ Valley Christian | 5 |
| 03/01/25 vs Pinnacle | 4 |
| 02/25/26 vs Shadow Ridge | 3 |
Kyan Sims tossed a big game, not allowing a single earned run while striking out nine over five innings pitched. Those nine strikeouts gave him a new career-high.
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Cole Cassidy, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two doubles, one stolen base, and two RBI. He is becoming a predictor of Verrado's success: when he posts at least three hits the team is undefeated (and 2-3-1 when he doesn't). Brady Trujillo was another key player, going 2-for-3 with three RBI and one run.
Verrado kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 12 hits. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post 11 or more hits.
Meanwhile, Youngker got the win against Kellis on Friday by a conclusive 15-0. The Roughriders might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won five games by ten runs or more this season.
Adrian Salazar looked comfortable as he didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over four innings pitched.
At the plate, Mason Grado and Isaac Valencia did most of the damage at the plate: Grado went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, three runs, and one double, while Valencia went 3-for-4 with four RBI, one triple, and one run. The team also got some help courtesy of Daniel Rojas, who went 2-for-3 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI.
Verrado's win bumped their record up to 5-3-1. As for Youngker, their victory bumped their record up to 7-2.
Youngker's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Monday. Verrado has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 8.6 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Youngker, though, as they've been averaging an even more impressive 4 strikeouts. Will Verrado keep running through batters, or will the Roughriders buck the trend?
Verrado was able to grind out a solid win over Youngker when the teams last played back in March of 2025, winning 7-4. Do the Vipers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Roughriders turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
