The Snowflake Lobos will take on the Rio Rico Hawks in a tournament on Friday. Snowflake's pitching crew has only allowed 3.9 runs per game this season, so Rio Rico's hitters will have their work cut out for them.
Snowflake came into their game on Thursday off a hard-fought close win, but unfortunately suffered a serious change of fortune. They lost 12-1 to Estrella Foothills. The Lobos have struggled against the Wolves recently, as the game was their fourth consecutive lost meeting.
Snowflake saw two different players step up and record at least one hit. One of them was Kenyan Bryant, who went 1-for-2 with one double and one RBI.
Rio Rico not only won on Thursday, but they posted their biggest win since March 17th. They put the hurt on Buckeye with a sharp 13-1 victory. Considering Rio Rico has won five matchups by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
Jesus Rodriguez made a big impact while hitting and pitching. He tossed five innings while giving up just one earned run off five hits. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one walk in three consecutive appearances. He was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 3-for-4. Those three hits gave him a new career-high.
In other batting news, Rudy Garavito was incredible, going 2-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Those four RBI gave him a new career-high. Another player making a difference was Jay Teso, who scored three runs while getting on base in three of his four plate appearances.
Rio Rico always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .541. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Buckeye only posted an OBP of .375.
Rio Rico has been performing well recently as they've won three of their last four games. That's provided a nice bump to their 8-7 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 8.8 runs over those games. As for Snowflake, their loss dropped their record down to 10-3.
Both Snowflake and Rio Rico just can't seem to miss. The Lobos have been making plenty of contact this season, having averaged 9.3 hits per game. However, it's not like Rio Rico struggles in that department as they've been averaging only 5 hits. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
Snowflake was able to grind out a solid victory over Rio Rico in their previous meeting back in March of 2017, winning 10-7. Will the Lobos repeat their success, or do the Hawks have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
