The Highlands Ranch Falcons will take on the Arvada West Wildcats at 11:00 a.m. on Friday. Expect the scorekeeper to be kept busy: if their previous games are any indication, both will really light up the scoreboard.
Highlands Ranch took a loss when they played away from home on Tuesday, but their home fans gave them all the motivation they needed on Thursday. They blew past Dakota Ridge 10-4.
Belle Andrews made a big impact no matter where she played. She struck out 14 batters over seven innings while giving up just two earned (and two unearned) runs off four hits (and only one walk). Andrews was also big at the plate, scoring two runs and stealing two bases while going 2-for-4.
In other batting news, Lydia Slocum was incredible, going 1-for-3 with a home run, four RBI, and two runs. Bri Cordray also deserves some recognition as she hit her first triple of the season.
Highlands Ranch didn't let batters stay on the plate for long and finished the game with 14 strikeouts. That's the most strikeouts they've posted since back in August of 2023.
Meanwhile, Arvada West came into Tuesday's matchup having lost three straight, but that streak is now in the rearview. They were the clear victor by a 21-12 margin over Chaparral on Tuesday. With that win, the Wildcats brought their scoring average up to 8.6 runs per game.
Arvada West let Makinzi Gallegos and Jailynn Ausman loose on the outfield. Gallegos scored six runs and stole a base while going 4-for-5, while Ausman went 4-for-5 with a home run, six RBI, and three runs. With that strong performance, Gallegos is now averaging an impressive 2.2 runs per game. The team also got some help courtesy of Macie Ferguson, who went 3-for-6 with four RBI and a run.
Highlands Ranch's record now sits at 2-4. As for Arvada West, their victory was their sixth straight on the road dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 2-3.
Arvada West's hitters will have their work cut out for them on Friday. Highlands Ranch has been retiring batters left and right this season, having averaged 9 strikeouts per game. It's a different story for Arvada West, though, as they've been averaging only 4. Will Highlands Ranch keep running through batters, or will Arvada West buck the trend?
Highlands Ranch might still be hurting after the 13-4 defeat they got from Arvada West when the teams last played back in August of 2023. Can Highlands Ranch avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
