The Vista Ridge Wolves will head out on the road to square off against the Mesa Ridge Grizzlies at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday.
Vista Ridge lost 16-7 to Pueblo West on Thursday. The Wolves have struggled against the Cyclones recently, as their game on Thursday was their third consecutive lost matchup.
Meanwhile, Mesa Ridge came tearing into Thursday's matchup with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 8.5 runs) and they left with even more momentum. They put the hurt on the Tigers with a sharp 16-2 victory. Considering the Grizzlies have won ten contests by more than five runs this season, Thursday's blowout was nothing new.
DonnaPaola Martinez was a major factor while hitting and pitching. She looked comfortable on the mound, striking out ten batters over six innings while giving up just two earned runs off two hits. She has been nothing but reliable: she hasn't given up more than two hits in three consecutive appearances. She was also solid in the batter's box, scoring a run while going 3-for-4. That's the most strikeouts she has posted since back in September.
In other batting news, Lillian Staszesky was incredible, going 4-for-5 with a home run, four runs, and two stolen bases. She has been hot recently, having also posted three or more hits the last three times she's played. Another player making a difference was Grace Barnhart, who scored three runs while going 2-for-4.
Perhaps unsurprisingly given the score, Mesa Ridge kept the outfield on their toes and finished the game with 19 hits. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now hit at least eight hits in five consecutive games.
Vista Ridge's loss ended a four-game streak of wins at home and dropped them to 12-10. As for Mesa Ridge, they have been performing incredibly well recently as they've won six of their last seven matches, which provided a nice bump to their 17-5 record this season.
Vista Ridge came out on top in a nail-biter against Mesa Ridge when the teams last played back in August of 2023, sneaking past 3-2. The rematch might be a little tougher for Vista Ridge since the team won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
