The California School for the Deaf Eagles will venture away from home to square off against the St. Joseph Notre Dame Pilots at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday. California School for the Deaf is currently enjoying a perfect season and no doubt wants to keep things rolling.
California School for the Deaf will bounce into Wednesday's game after beating Head-Royce, who they had gone 1-8 against in their nine prior meetings. The Eagles were the clear victors by an 11-1 margin over the Jayhawks on Tuesday. The Eagles might be getting used to big wins seeing as the team has won seven matchups by seven runs or more this season.
Julianna Hammons spent all five innings played on the mound, and it's clear why: she surrendered only one earned run on four hits and racked up 11 Ks. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in nine consecutive appearances.
Jovianna Ikeda
| 04/01/25 vs Head-Royce | 4 |
| 04/11/24 vs Redwood Christian | 3 |
| 03/20/24 vs Urban | 3 |
| 03/11/25 vs Tennyson | 2 |
| 05/08/24 vs Making Waves Academy | 1 |
On the hitting side, the team relied heavily on Jovianna Ikeda, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, four RBI, and two runs. Those four RBI gave her a new career-high. Aliyah Alvarez also deserves some recognition as she hit her first double of the season.
California School for the Deaf was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .455. That was just more of the same: they've now posted a batting average of .455 or higher in three consecutive contests.
Meanwhile, St. Joseph Notre Dame was not the first on the board on Tuesday, but they got there more often. They walked away with an 8-3 victory over Redwood Christian. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Pilots.
Cassandra Sanchez was a major factor no matter where she played. On the mound, she didn't allow a single earned run while striking out 11 over seven innings pitched. Sanchez was also big at the plate, scoring two runs while getting on base in three of her five plate appearances.
In other batting news, Lexi Roben was excellent, scoring two runs while getting on base in four of her five plate appearances. Another player making a difference was Safah Hashemi, who got on base in three of her five plate appearances with two RBI.
California School for the Deaf pushed their record up to 11-0 with the win, which was their seventh straight at home. The home victories came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 15.1 runs over those games. As for St. Joseph Notre Dame, their record now sits at 7-4.
Wednesday's game will be a test for both teams' pitchers. California School for the Deaf hasn't had any issues making contact this season, having earned a batting average of .368. However, it's not like St. Joseph Notre Dame struggles in that department as they've averaged .326. With both teams so capable at the plate, fans should be ready for an impressive hitting performance.
California School for the Deaf couldn't quite get it done against St. Joseph Notre Dame in their previous matchup back in May of 2024 as they fell 8-3. Can the Eagles avenge their loss or is history doomed to repeat itself? We'll find out soon enough.
