The Mesquite Wildcats are taking a road trip to challenge the Ironwood Ridge Nighthawks at 4:00 p.m. on Monday. Mesquite is coming into the matchup hot, having won their last four games.
Mesquite is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Arizona's top teams: Cactus Shadows, who was ranked 19th at the time (Mesquite was ranked 15th). The Wildcats walked away with a 13-10 victory over the Falcons on Saturday. The high-flying hitting performance was a huge turnaround for the Wildcats considering their two-run performance the game before.
Aidan Stenberg looked comfortable as he pitched three innings while giving up just two earned runs off four hits. He has been nothing but reliable on the mound: he hasn't given up more than two walks in ten consecutive appearances.
At the plate, Noah Forney was a standout: he went 2-for-4 with three runs, three RBI, and one stolen base. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in April of 2024. Andres Lozano was another key player, going 3-for-4 with three runs, one stolen base, and one double.
Meanwhile, it may have taken eight innings to finish the job, but Ironwood Ridge ultimately got the result they hoped for on Saturday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 3-2 win over Yuma. The victory was nothing new for the Nighthawks as they're now sitting on four straight.
Keanu Bracamonte was excellent, going 2-for-3 with one triple, two RBI, and one double.
Ironwood Ridge's win was their sixth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 23-7. Those home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 9.5 runs over those games. As for Mesquite, their record is now 21-8.
Everything went Mesquite's way against Ironwood Ridge in their previous matchup back in March of 2018, as Mesquite made off with a 9-2 win. Will the Wildcats repeat their success, or do the Nighthawks have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
