The Magdalena Steers will take on the Gateway Christian Warriors at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. Each of these teams will be fighting to keep a win streak alive as Magdalena comes in on 16 and Gateway Christian on nine.
Magdalena is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Thursday. They sure made it a nail-biter, but they managed to escape with a 6-5 win over Grady. For those keeping track at home, that's the closest victory the Steers have posted since March 27th.
Josiah Candelaria spent all seven innings on the mound, and it's clear why: he surrendered just two earned (and three unearned) runs on eight hits and racked up ten Ks.
At the plate, Javen Tafoya was incredible, going 2-for-3 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI. The team also got some help courtesy of Joseph Zamora, who went 2-for-4 with one triple, one run, and one double.
The home team had won the previous three meetings between Gateway Christian and Logan, and Gateway Christian kept the tradition alive. The Warriors put the hurt on the Longhorns with a sharp 12-2 win on Thursday. Considering the Warriors have won 13 contests by more than six runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Ethaniel Wigley was a major factor while hitting and pitching. On the mound, he struck out eight batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off seven hits. Wigley was also stellar in the batter's box, getting on base in all four of his plate appearances with two runs and two RBI. That's the most RBI he has posted since back in April of 2024.
In other batting news, Gateway Christian got a massive performance out of Samuel Waide, who went 3-for-4 with three doubles, four RBI, and two runs. That's the most runs Waide has posted since back in April of 2024. Another player making a difference was Cohen Bolin, who went a perfect 3-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one double.
Gateway Christian always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .641. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Logan only posted an OBP of .448.
Magdalena's victory was their 12th straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 19-3. Those home wins came thanks in part to their pitching effort, having only surrendered 2.4 runs on average over those games. As for Gateway Christian, their victory bumped their record up to 15-4.
Magdalena couldn't quite get it done against Gateway Christian in their previous meeting back in April of 2016 as they fell 9-4. Can the Steers avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
