Carlsbad claims sweep in pair of pitchers' duels

CARLSBAD – Carlsbad and Clovis engaged in two gritty pitchers' duels Friday, but the Cavemen found a way to garner the edge.

Carlsbad delivered some key base hits to ensure its 1-2 punch, Trevor Rogers and Josh Chavarria, would come through on the winning end – and they were victorious, 1-0 and 2-1.

In game one, Rogers helped his own cause on the mound with an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth inning. That was all the run support the junior lefty needed, as he kept the ball down relatively low and pitched with great poise.

Clovis senior pitcher Daniel Gallegos also had a strong outing, hitting his spots on the lower end of the strike zone. He also got out of some tough situations with multiple Carlsbad runners on base, getting a much-needed strikeout or groundout to proceed to the next inning – such a strikeout with runners on second and third base to end the bottom of the fifth.

“You put Trevor on the mound and you put Daniel on the mound, that’s all you can ask for is a great-pitched ball game. We make one mistake, and they capitalize on it,” Clovis coach Richard Cruce said. “(Trevor) really didn’t throw his off-speed very well, but he threw a lot of strikes and we just didn’t adjust. Daniel’s done a hell of a job for us all year; he goes out and competes his tail off. He was mixing his pitches really well.”

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Clovis’ Gabriel Montoya throws out Carlsbad’s Will Fiala at first base in the first game of Friday's 4-6A doubleheader.

Cavemen senior rightfielder Garret Day was 2-for-3 in game one. Rogers threw a complete-game, one-hit shutout, walking one and striking out 11.

Gallegos had Clovis’ only hit in game one, a single. Gallegos was the hard-luck loser , allowing just four hits and two walks over six innings with three strikeouts.

That tight competition carried over into the nightcap with Chavarria and Clovis senior Austin Adams pitching.

Just like in the first game, both pitchers kept the ball down fairly low and forced multiple ground outs and pop outs.

Carlsbad drew first blood in the bottom of the fourth when sophomore second baseman Jordin Molina ripped an RBI single down the middle, but Clovis senior first baseman Gabriel Montoya answered right back in the top of the fifth with an RBI single of his own. Montoya hit 1-for-2 in the nightcap.

Carlsbad seized control of the nightcap with a double steal at second and third, followed by a Chavarria grounder to score Ryan Razo.

Chavarria and sophomore Tristan Walker each had two hits in the nightcap for Carlsbad. Chavarria allowed three hits, with six strikeouts and no walks.

"We got enough to get it done," Chavarria said. "We got the 'W,' but it's definitely not what we wanted. We would've like to put a lot more hits on the board and score more runs. Our defense did awesome, made all the routine plays we needed. We're definitely in the driver's seat (for district), but we still have to grind. We can get beat by any team at any given time."

Adams threw six innings for Clovis, allowing just two runs on six hits, walking two and striking out three.

Carlsbad (17-5, 7-1) will host Alamogordo in a doubleheader at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, while Clovis (12-10, 2-6) will entertain Hobbs in a 4:30 p.m. doubleheader the same day.

“Every Friday and every Tuesday, it’s going to be a battle,” said Cruce, whose club is still in the running for 4-6A’s second spot. “(The Cavemen) have the upper hand right now, especially with the power arm in Trevor.”