Back-to-back HRs send Hawks past Cats

LAS CRUCES — Centennial put on a quick power display in Saturday’s second game of a state Class 6A best-of-3 baseball series, and the Hawks never looked back.

Seniors Manny Cachora and Cedric Reynaud hit two-out, back-to-back homers in the bottom of the first, erasing an early Wildcats lead and giving Centennial a 6-1 victory.

The sixth-seeded Hawks (19-8) advanced to the quarterfinal round of the state players next Thursday, while the Cats (16-12) saw their season come to an end.

Clovis dropped the series opener 6-5 on Friday night when Centennial’s Junior Pena made a diving catch in center field to end the game and leave the bases loaded.

“I don’t know if that had any effect,” CHS coach Richard Cruce said of Friday’s loss. “Winning that first game is always important, but we just didn’t get the hits when we needed them.”

Junior Tomas Gallegos reached on an error in the top of the first on Saturday and eventually scored the Cats’ lone run on a passed ball. Junior Jacob Archuleta took over from there, finishing with a five-hitter for the Hawks.

The back-to-back homers turned the game around.

“Cachora is one of the best hitters we’ve seen all year,” Cruce said. “Then I thought we had (Reynaud) struck out but didn’t get the call, and the next pitch he hits it out.”

Junior Xavier Mays doubled home a run in the second, then capped a three-run third with a run-scoring triple. Junior Sebastian Lopez blanked the Hawks the rest of the way, but the Cats were unable to mount much on offense.

Virtually all of Clovis’ key players will be back next season, and Cruce is optimistic.

“Coming into this season we had two people with any (significant) varsity experience, and two innings back on the mound,” he said. “Next year, we’ve got 100 percent of our experience on the mound (back), and we’ll add to that.”

Centennial 6, Clovis 5 (Friday) — Clovis High lost a heartbreaker in Friday’s Class 6A round-of-16, best-of-3 series opener at Centennial.

Pena pitched 6 1/3 innings for Centennial, then went to center field and made the play of the game with diving catch as he charged towards the infield.

Junior Connor Langrell survived a rough first in which the Hawks erased a 3-0 deficit with four runs, going the distance on the mound for the Cats.

“It was a good baseball game,” CHS coach Richard Cruce said. “Connor pitched himself our of some situations, but the game ends on an amazing play in center field.”

The Cats (16-11) kept it close despite getting outhit 10-4. Senior Manny Cachora’s solo home run in the bottom of the sixth made it 6-3, and it turned out to be a necessary run for the Hawks.

Junior Tomas Gallegos had two of the Cats’ four hits. Four players had two hits for Centennial (18-8), and Cachora finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs, hitting a two-run double in the first.