The Willow Canyon Wildcats are taking a road trip to challenge the Verrado Vipers at 6:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
On Thursday, Willow Canyon got the win against Centennial by a conclusive 12-2. The Wildcats haven't had any issues with the Coyotes recently, as the game was their ninth consecutive victory against them.
Easton Spriggs
| 04/24/25 @ Centennial | 6 |
| 04/22/25 vs Centennial | 6 |
| 04/15/25 @ Lake Havasu | 13 |
Easton Spriggs made a splash while hitting and pitching. She didn't allow a single earned run while striking out six over six innings pitched. She has been consistent recently: she hasn't tossed less than six strikeouts in three consecutive appearances. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-5 with one home run, two runs, and two RBI.
In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Mataya Olson, who went 3-for-5 with three runs, one triple, and one stolen base.
Willow Canyon was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .486. They are 14-2 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.
Meanwhile, Verrado entered their tilt with Paradise Valley on Thursday with five consecutive wins, and they'll enter their next game with six. They put the hurt on the Trojans with a sharp 19-4 win. That's two games straight that the Vipers have won by exactly 15 runs.
Bailee Smalls was a standout: she went a perfect 2-for-2 with two runs, one stolen base, and two RBI. That's the most RBI she has posted since back in March. The team also got some help courtesy of Kylie Bates, who went a perfect 1-for-1 with two runs, one stolen base, and one double.
Willow Canyon's record is now 17-8-1. As for Verrado, their record now sits at 24-4.
Fans could be in store for some top-tier slugging on Friday. Willow Canyon hasn't had any problems when it comes to power this season, having averaged 0.9 home runs per game. However, it's not like Verrado struggles in that department as they've been averaging 0.6 home runs. With so much power on both teams, it'll be down to the pitchers to keep the mound locked down.
Everything went Willow Canyon's way against Verrado in their previous meeting back in March of 2022, as Willow Canyon made off with a 12-2 victory. The rematch might be a little tougher for the Wildcats since the squad won't have the home-field advantage this time around. We'll see if the change in venue makes a difference.
