With a playoff game on the line, West Ranch rose to the challenge on Thursday. They were the clear victor by an 18-10 margin over the Duarte Falcons. West Ranch's hitters stepped up their game for this one, as that was the most runs they've scored all season.
Jovanna Ross made a big impact while hitting and pitching. She kept things locked down with no earned runs or hits over 4.1 innings pitched. Ross has been consistent recently: she hasn't given up more than two walks in six consecutive pitching appearances. Ross was also solid in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with four RBI and a double.
In other batting news, Ava Esparza-Nguyen was a standout: she scored four runs and stole a base while getting on base in all five of her plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Savannah Gatewood, who went 2-for-3 with two triples, three runs, and two RBI.
On Duarte's side, Davina Durazo was cooking despite her team's loss, scoring a run while going 2-for-4. The team also got some help courtesy of Daniella Matiarena, who scored a run while going 2-for-5.
West Ranch is on a roll lately: they've won four of their last five matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 13-12 record this season. As for Duarte, this is the second loss in a row for them and nudges their season record down to 15-6-1.
West Ranch will look to defend their home field on Tuesday against Palos Verdes at 3:15 p.m. West Ranch has given up an average of 8 runs per game this season, so hopefully the team got some pitching drills in this week. Duarte does not have any more games scheduled as of now.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
