PASADENA, CA – For the first time this season, the Arroyo Seco Saints (3-1) will go to battle against the Orange County Riptide (3-3), but this game has some playoff history with it.  

For the past two seasons the Saints and the Riptide have met each other in the playoffs, with both teams earning a victory.  

In the 2023 summer season, the teams battled it out in the CCL South Championship game with the the Saints winning the game 1-0. 

But the Riptide would come back with a vengeance the next season in the playoffs as they won 4-1 in the CCL Wildcard round.  

For the Saints’ young season, they have a 3-1 record, with a game still needing to be completed against the Santa Barbara Foresters. Their only loss came on opening day against the San Diego Waves in a 12-9 contest.  

However, the Saints seem to have caught fire with a three-game win streak. In their last game on Wednesday, they were able to beat the San Diego Bombers with 7-4 being the final score. Joey Milto (Transfer Portal) added to his team-leading RBI stat, grabbing two in the game. 

Some players for the Saints who have been playing well are Trotter Enright (Cal State Long Beach) and Jack Little (Baylor). Both of them have an above .450 batting average, with a combined 15 hits and 8 RBIs.  

On the other side of the foul lines, the Riptide have an even .500 record of 3-3. Like the Saints, Orange County is coming into the game with a three-game winning streak. 

In their last game, the Riptide won convincingly with a 12-1 score over the Philippines Baseball Group. In the game, seven different hitters had at least one RBI, with three Riptide hitters having two.  

The Riptide are led by Bradley Navarro (Utah) and Jake Evans (Cal State Long Beach). Navarro during the season has a batting average of .444 with four hits and a home run. Evans is tied with a team lead of .500 batting average; he also has two hits and an RBI.  

One team will have their winning streak come to an end today, with the other earning their fourth win of the season.  

The rosters may be different, but the history remains the same. Both teams are looking to bring the firepower to come out of this Friday the 13th game with a win.  

Contributors:

• Saints reporter Nick Olquin (Ashland)
• Edited by Saints reporter Tyler Bowne (San Diego State)
• Saints photographer Carina Sanchez (California State University Los Angeles)