The Arizona College Prep Knights will square off against the Desert Edge Scorpions at 3:45 p.m. on Monday. Arizona College Prep is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 8.3 runs per game this season.
Arizona College Prep is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Arizona's top teams: Notre Dame Prep, who was ranked 16th at the time (Arizona College Prep was ranked tenth). The Knights fell just short of the Saints by a score of 3-2 on Thursday. The Knights have now taken an 'L' in back-to-back games.
Liliana Gagnon was a force to be reckoned with on the mound despite the final result: she didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only one hit while striking out seven over five innings pitched.
At the plate, Samantha Sherman made the most of her time at bat despite the final result and went 3-for-4 with one home run. The team also got some help courtesy of Taylor Estrella, who went 2-for-3 with one stolen base, one run, and one double.
Meanwhile, Desert Edge suffered their closest loss since March 1st on Tuesday. They fell just short of Mountain Pointe by a score of 6-4.
Aliyah Fatigoni (2027) was huge while hitting and pitching even without the win. She looked comfortable on the mound, pitching six innings while giving up three earned (and three unearned) runs off eight hits. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in nine consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, going 3-for-4 with two runs and one stolen base.
In other batting news, Leila Taylor (2027) was cooking despite her team's loss, going 2-for-4 with two RBI, one run, and one double.
Arizona College Prep's defeat dropped their record down to 21-7. As for Desert Edge, their loss dropped their record down to 9-13.
Desert Edge's pitching crew has a crucial task ahead of them: Arizona College Prep has been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.5 hits per game. It's a different story for Desert Edge, though, as they've been averaging 9.3 hits. Given Arizona College Prep's sizable advantage in that area, the Scorpions will need to find a way to close that gap.
Arizona College Prep skirted past Desert Edge 1-0 when the teams last played back in March of 2023. Will the Knights repeat their success, or do the Scorpions have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
