Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Magdalena freshman shortstop Josiah Candelaria has the ball waiting as Melrose junior Cy Draper is out trying to stretch a first-inning single during Wednesday's Class 1A state quarterfinal matchup at Melrose. Almost everything went the Buffaloes' way, though, including a 3-for-3 game with a two-run homer for Draper, as Melrose advanced to Thursday's semifinals with a 19-0 rout.
MELROSE – There's nothing like getting off to a quick start to take the suspense out of things.
Defending Class 1A champion Melrose did just that on Wednesday, getting a three-run homer from junior catcher Dathan Yeary before anyone had been retired in the bottom of the first and rolling to a 19-0 win over Magdalena in a state quarterfinal game shortened to 4 ½ cantos by the 10-run rule.
The third-seeded Buffaloes (12-6), who defeated District 3-1A rival Logan13-7 in last year's finals, face second-seeded Gateway Christian (13-5) in 1 p.m. semifinal match on Thursday at Jennifer Riordan Spark Kindness Sports Complex in Albuquerque.
Meantime, another 3-1A team, Grady, also advanced to this week's semifinals, blasting Mesilla Valley 14-2 at Las Cruces. The fifth-seeded Bronchos (12-5) face top-seeded Logan (16-4) in Thursday's first semifinal, set for 10 a.m.
As the top two seeds, Logan and Gateway had first-round byes in the six-team bracket.
The championship game is set for noon on Friday at the University of New Mexico's Santa Ana Star Field in Albuquerque.
"The boys came out and executed," Buffs coach Jared Wilhoit said. "We hit the ball really well. Overall, we played a sound ballgame."
Yeary finished 4-for-4 with three runs scored and six RBIs, adding an RBI single in the second and a run-scoring double and an RBI single in a 12-run fourth, which was capped by junior first baseman Cy Draper's two-run homer.
Senior Michael Cardonita pitched a five-inning three-hitter, striking out 10 with no walks, and also went 2-for-2 for three RBIs while walking twice and scoring four runs.
Melrose beat the Steers 19-7, overcoming a seven-run Mag first, in a neutral-site game earlier this season at Estancia. But Yeary wasn't about to take anything for granted.
"Games before this don't really matter," he said. "You just have to come out and play ball, and take care of business."
Melrose's 2-3-4 hitters – Cardonita, Yeary and Draper – combined to go 9-for-9 with a walk, two hit-by- pitches nine runs scored and 12 driven in. Draper was 3-for-3 and also had an RBI double.
Cardonita gave up a two-out double to Steers leadoff man Matt Lopez in the third and a pair of fourth-inning singles. But Yeary limited the damage by throwing out the first runner, senior second baseman Matt Parker, on a steal attempt.
"Dathan started us off there, and Michael was effective on the mound," Wilhoit said. "The early runs always helps the pitching."
Yeary, who also is a pitching mainstay for the Buffs, said Roswell-based Gateway figures to be a good test in the semifinals.
"Gateway Christian's a good team," he said. "They took two out of three from Logan this season. We have to come out strong."
Grady 14, Mesilla Valley 2 – At Las Cruces, the Bronchos wasted no time, jumping on the fourth-seeded SonBlazers (13-5), scoring 11 runs in the first two innings in a contest shortened to five by the 10-run rule.
Senior Zane Rush threw a five-inning two-hitter with 13 strikeouts for Grady, and also went 2-for-4 at the plate with a double, an RBI and two runs scored. Freshmen Andre Garcia, Caden Croy and Hays Rush combined for seven hits, scoring a combined six times and driving in three runs.
Junior Jeremiah Sullivan was 2-for-2 for Mesilla Valley and scored both of the team's runs.
