Lady Rams sweep Ruidoso

PORTALES - You could easily say Emma Long had a career night on Wednesday.

The Portales High junior had never gone deep in her high school career, but she belted a three-run homer in each game and drove in a total of eight runs as the Lady Rams swept Ruidoso 12-8 and 17-6 at Wheeler Park.

More than that, Long had a perfect day at the plate with a walk and three hits in the opener and a 4-for-4 outing with five RBIs in Game 2.

Her first home run, to left-center field in the bottom of the sixth, gave Portales (7-4) a seemingly safe 12-3 lead, but it was welcome insurance when the Lady Warriors (6-8) tallied five times in the top of the seventh.

In the nightcap, Long gave the Lady Rams a 5-4 lead in the first with an opposite-field shot to right-center, part of a seven-run explosion.

"I had no idea the first one was going out," Long said. "When I got my second one, I kind of immediately knew it was out."

Junior Abby Marquez, who had pitched every inning this season for Portales, came out during the top of the second in Game 2 after tweaking an already-injured ankle. Lady Rams coach Amanda Bonner shuffled positions in her lineup, with freshman left-hander Myleigh Banda taking over in the circle and Marquez becoming the designated player.

Because Marquez was allowed to continue to bat as the DP, Ruidoso coach Tyler Perrin opted to play the game under protest. Nevertheless, Banda did just fine in her first outing in the circle, giving up a single to the first hitter she faced and then retiring 10 in a row before issuing a two-out walk in the fifth.

Banda got the next hitter on a fly ball, ending the game on the 10-run rule.

"Myleigh stepped up and threw amazing," Long said. "There wasn't a second of doubt in our minds after she came in to pitch."

Bonner said she made the move to be cautious with her top hurler.

"I didn't want to chance anything going into district," she said. "Myleigh came in and did a great job."

The Lady Rams extended their winning streak to five - four against the Lady Warriors around a Tuesday night home win over Clovis. They were to open District 4-4A action on Saturday with a 1 p.m. single tilt at Artesia, and they play at Roswell Goddard in a 1 p.m. single tilt this Saturday.

"If we can just keep building on what we've got going, we'll be all right," Bonner said.

Portales 19, Clovis 9 (Tuesday) - The Lady Rams turned the tables on Clovis, which had posted a 19-9, run-rule win over PHS four nights earlier at Lady Wildcat Field.

Portales broke the game open with a 10-run second for a 14-2 lead. The Lady Cats (3-11) kept the game going temporarily with a run in the top of the fifth to make it 18-9, but PHS promptly countered in the bottom half to end it.

Freshman Angel Ornelas went 2-for-3 with a walk, a home run, three runs scored and five RBIs, while Marquez was 3-for-4 with two doubles and four runs scored and sophomore Bailey Hinderliter finished 3-for-3 with a pair of walks, scoring twice and driving in another.

Baseball - At Eunice, the host Cardinals scored five runs in the fourth and rallied for a 9-6 victory over PHS on Tuesday.

The Rams (6-8) got a two-run double from junior Travin Price in the first and kept the lead until Eunice (10-1), which suffered its first loss of the season in a doubleheader split at Lovington on Thursday, erupted in the fourth to take a 7-4 lead en route to their third victory over PHS this season.

PHS finished with six hits, including a 2-for-3 outing from Price. Meantime, senior Micah Tippett paced Eunice's eight-hit attack, going 2-for-3 with a home run, a sacrifice fly and three RBIs, while senior Gio Chacon was also 2-for-3 with a double, a walk and two runs scored.

Senior right-hander Zeke Benton went five innings to earn the win.

The Rams were slated to be in Texico this weekend, taking on the Wolverines on Friday and Cobre on Saturday. On Tuesday, they return to District 4-4A action with a pair of contests at Lovington.