Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
ALBUQUERQUE — Hope Christian didn’t score often on Saturday, but when it did it seemed to make the Portales Lady Rams a bit angry.
Tied 2-2 after the first inning of their District 4-4A opener, Portales took off the rest of the way and handed the Huskies an 18-2 whipping, ending in four innings on the 15-run rule Then, down 5-0 after a five-run Hope second, the Rams came back with a 10-run third and went on to a 21-5 win in Game 2, which ended in five on the 10-run rule.
“We hit the ball really well against some decent pitching,” Lady Rams coach Robbie Crowley said. “Hopefully, that’s coming around for us.”
Freshman Wendy Baeza, who has missed time recently with a shoulder injury, threw an abbreviated four-hitter in the opener. Meantime, Portales (11-7, 5-1 district) pounded out 15 hits, with Kimberlie Hay going 2-for-3 and driving in three runs.
The Lady Rams counted Hope’s early burst in the second game with a 10-run explosion in the top of the third, keyed by Micaela Garcia’s grand slam. Devin Lopez added a three-run homer in the fourth, and Alexis Garcia started an eight-run fifth with a leadoff home run.
The Huskies (10-10, 1-5) chased Baeza in the second inning, but sophomore Aymri Chavez stepped in and blanked them the rest of the way.
“I was really proud of Aymri,” Crowley said. “She’s been having to carry the load lately (in the circle) with Wendy hurt.”
Portales outhit Hope 13-9, and took advantage of six Huskies errors.
The Lady Rams return to Wheeler Park on Tuesday for a 4:30 p.m. non-district contest against Clovis.
