Paloma Valley baseball team knocks off Moreno Valley

By Paige Mendez, Correspondent

The Paloma Valley High baseball team posted a 7-3 victory over Moreno Valley at home on Thursday. The game was Paloma’s fourth match-up of the season and brought their record to 3-1.

Chapman Webber, who started on the mound for the Wildcats, allowed one run in the first inning on a wild pitch. Meanwhile, his team rallied for seven runs of their own.

The first Wildcat to score was RJ Holmes on a fielder’s choice after having reached base on a walk. Ayden Harrison crossed the plate next for Paloma on a single from Jaylen Adams.

Webber posted six strikeouts with just one walk in the four innings he pitched, earning himself the win. But he said the win wouldn’t have come without the team having his back.

“It feels great to know my team can back me up with some runs and support,” Webber said of his team’s offensive performance. “The middle innings were key for me today and the defense did their job really well.”

On the offensive side of the game, Paloma racked up 10 hits for seven runs.

Moreno Valley showed signs of life late in the game with two runs in the fifth inning after a struggle on the mound for the Wildcats loaded the bases. The Vikings put up two hits in the inning and brought the score to 7-3 but it wouldn’t change after that inning, giving Paloma the victory.

Head coach Jason Berni said there were a few factors he saw that contributed to his team’s win.

“We were able to put together a few innings where we were able to score, we didn’t make a lot of mistakes defensively, and a lot of our guys who have been struggling had decent at-bats today,” Berni said. “We just want to be able to build off of that now.”

The team’s next chance to build on that will come Saturday at Vista Murrieta, then a league game next Thursday against Heritage at home.