The Rancho Rams will challenge the Legacy Longhorns at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Rancho is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.8 runs per game this season.
Rancho barely beat Desert Pines the last time the pair played, but that sure wasn't the case this time around. The Rams' pitcher stepped up to hand the Jaguars a 15-0 shutout on Monday. The high-scoring effort was just what the Rams needed considering they were shut out in their previous contest.
Johnny Ramos made a splash while hitting and pitching. He struck out six batters over three innings while giving up no earned runs off two hits (and not a single walk). He also tossed no walks, which is notable because Rancho is 2-1 when he allows at most one walk, but 1-6 otherwise. Ramos was also solid in the batter's box, going 1-for-3 with one stolen base, two RBI, and one run.

Julian Lopez
| 03/23/26 @ Desert Pines | 2 |
| 03/12/26 vs Sunrise Mountain | 2 |
| 03/10/26 @ Sunrise Mountain | 2 |
| 03/06/26 vs Palo Verde | 1 |
| 03/05/26 @ Legacy | 1 |
| + 1 more games |
In other batting news, Julian Lopez and Harry Leppelmeier did most of the damage at the plate: Lopez went 2-for-3 with two runs, two doubles, and one stolen base, while Leppelmeier went 2-for-3 with four RBI, one run, and one double. Lopez has become a key player for Rancho: the team is undefeated when he posts at least two runs, but 0-7 otherwise. Mayson Bumstead was another key player, getting on base in two of his three plate appearances with two runs, one stolen base, and one RBI.
Rancho was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .421. They are a perfect 3-0 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Legacy faced Palo Verde in a battle between two of the state's top teams on Tuesday. The Longhorns fell 7-3 to the Panthers. The Longhorns haven't had much luck with the Panthers recently, as the team has come up short the last five times they've met.
Easton Lake was cooking despite his team's loss, going 2-for-4 with three stolen bases and two runs.
Rancho is on a roll lately: they've won three of their last four matchups. That's provided a nice bump to their 3-7 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 14.5 runs over those games. As for Legacy, their defeat dropped their record down to 8-5.
Rancho might still be hurting after the 11-4 loss they got from Legacy in their previous meeting on March 5th. Will the Rams have more luck at home instead of on the road? Check MaxPreps after the action for a full breakdown of the game and more baseball content.