The West Mesa Mustangs are taking a road trip to challenge the St. Pius X Sartans at 3:00 p.m. on Friday. Keep an eye on the score for this one: the two teams posted some lofty run totals in their previous games.
The home team had won the previous four meetings between West Mesa and Manzano, and West Mesa kept the tradition alive. West Mesa put the hurt on Manzano with a sharp 19-3 win on Thursday. The victory was some much needed relief for the Mustangs as it spelled an end to their four-game losing streak.
West Mesa got a massive performance out of Ellie Padilla, who went a perfect 2-for-2 with one home run, three runs, and four RBI. Christina ' Ocho' Perez was another key player, getting on base in all three of her plate appearances with one home run, three runs, and four RBI.
West Mesa always had someone on base and finished the game having posted an OBP of .885. The last time their OBP was this high was back in March of 2024.
Meanwhile, there's no place like home for St. Pius X, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Wednesday. They were the clear victor by a 16-1 margin over Rio Grande on Thursday. The Sartans haven't had any issues with the Ravens recently, as the game was their fifth consecutive win against them.
Dominique Morett made a splash no matter where she played. She looked comfortable on the mound, tossing three innings while giving up no earned runs off four hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two walks in four consecutive appearances. She was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while going 2-for-3. The dominant performance also gave her a new career-high in doubles (two).
In other batting news, Jordan Chavez and Sophia Trujillo did most of the damage at the plate: Chavez went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, three runs, and three RBI, while Trujillo went a perfect 3-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Davianna Romero, who scored three runs and stole a base while going 2-for-3.
St. Pius X pushed their record up to 4-8 with the victory, which was their third straight at home. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 16.7 runs over those games. As for West Mesa, their record now sits at 3-6.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. West Mesa hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.8 home runs per game. However, it's not like St. Pius X struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.8 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
West Mesa came up short against St. Pius X in their previous matchup back in March of 2024, falling 7-3. Can West Mesa avenge their defeat or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
