The La Joya Community Fighting Lobos are taking a road trip to challenge the Maryvale Panthers at 3:45 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
On Thursday, it was close, but La Joya Community sidestepped Washington for a 10-8 victory. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Fighting Lobos.
Samuel Acuna was excellent, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base. What's more, he posted two hits, the most he's had since back in March. Another player making a difference was Chris Mata, who got on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs.
Meanwhile, it was a proper cat-fight when Maryvale duked it out with South Mountain on Thursday. The Panthers came out on top in a nail-biter against the Jaguars, sneaking past 11-10. The win continues a trend for the Panthers in their matchups with the Jaguars: they've now won six in a row.
Christian Valdez and Ariel Garcia made a splash no matter where they played. Throwing, Valdez pitched 4.1 innings while giving up just one earned (and six unearned) runs off four hits. Meanwhile, Garcia pitched 2.2 innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits. Valdez is becoming a predictor of Maryvale's success: when he allows at most three earned runs the team is 2-1 (and 6-11 when he doesn't). At bat, Valdez got on base in all four of his plate appearances with two stolen bases, three runs, and one RBI, while Garcia went 1-for-3 with one run and one double. Valdez has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last three times he's played.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Sebastian Gonzalez, who went 3-for-4 with three RBI, one triple, and one run. He has become a key player for Maryvale: the team is undefeated when he posts at least three hits, but 5-12 otherwise. Nathan Benavidez was another key player, getting on base in three of his four plate appearances with two runs and one stolen base.
La Joya Community pushed their record up to 17-6 with the victory, which was their eighth straight at home. The home wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 11.0 runs over those games. As for Maryvale, their record is now 8-12.
Friday's match will be a test for both teams' pitchers. La Joya Community hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .378. However, it's not like Maryvale struggles in that department as they've averaged .315. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
La Joya Community might still be hurting after the 15-7 defeat they got from Maryvale when the teams last played back in April of 2015. Can the Fighting Lobos avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
