Following a no-hitter by Santa Clarita Christian’s Jacob Trosper, the Cardinals’ Zane Stauffer tossed a perfect game across five innings in a 14-0 win over Faith Baptist on Monday.
“Zane’s performance was impressive and fun to watch,” Cardinals head coach Ryan Franchimone said. He commanded the strike zone the entire game and continued to throw a lot of strikes and not give up any walks and challenge the hitters.”
Stauffer struck out 14 and did not let any batters on base as the Cardinals’ defense also played a clean game and did not commit any errors.
At the plate, the Cardinals’ lineup tallied 12 hits across five innings and took the lead early after a two-run first inning.
Franchimone said that the Cardinals’ offense has been clicking, and as of late, has only been getting better as the game continues.
“The total team’s performance at the plate was great,” he said. “We started off a little slow but really picked up the energy in the bottom of the fourth inning and scored nine runs. The defensive side was good to see as all of our players were engaged and wanted to make plays and we’re ready for the ball to be hit to them.”
Edward Shaffer led all Cardinals in runs batted in as he tallied four after ending the day 2-for-3 at the plate.
Jacob Trosper, who leads the Cardinals in batting average, ended the day 2-for-2 at the plate with a double and home run in the win.
The Cardinals secured the win after the team scored 10-plus runs to end the game early due to mercy rule and secured their fifth Heritage League win of the season.
On Thursday, the Cardinals completed the series sweep over Faith Baptist with a 10-0 win and are 6-1 and in first place in the Heritage League baseball standings.
“The last couple of league games have been very encouraging, coming off a no hitter and perfect game in back-to-back league games,” Franchimone said. “This will help the second half of the season with momentum as we continue to improve on our craft on offense and defense and give us a good shot at finishing league strong with the momentum we’ve built.”
The Cardinals will look to build upon their momentum in their next Heritage League contest on Monday, April 13, at home against the Trinity Knights with first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m.
