Showcasing the type of offensive firepower that is generally seen from playoff teams, the Montezuma-Cortez High School baseball team defeated Del Norte 21-0 and 22-11 in consecutive games in Cortez on March 26.
The first of the one-sided drubbings began when the Panthers scored seven runs in the 1st inning of the doubleheader’s opening game and added eight more runs in the contest’s second inning. The Panthers added six more runs over the subsequent two innings and the game was called after four innings of play.
Sophomore Korie Likes went 3-5 at the plate and drove in four runs, and junior Tristan York had two hits, including a triple, and three RBIs. Seniors Ryan Medina and Clayton Yoder, and junior Carson Yoder, also got in on the offensive action by driving in two runs each.
Preston Davidovich started on the mound for M-CHS and pitched four scoreless innings while striking out 11 Del Norte batters. The Panthers junior did not allow a hit during what turned out to be one of his team’s most dominant pitching performances in recent memory.
In the second game of the doubleheader, M-CHS scored five runs in the first inning, three runs in the second and four runs in the third inning to pull ahead 12-2.
After Del Norte scored eight straight runs to cut the Panthers’ lead to 12-10 heading into the bottom of the fifth inning, M-CHS scored three runs in the fifth and seven runs in the sixth to lock down the mercy-rule victory.
Several M-CHS players came through with big hits during the contest, including freshman Trinidad McDonnell, junior Logan Birch, and Likes, who all drove in three runs. Likes and Birch both slugged a double for the Panthers and McDonnell scored a game-high three runs.
Senior Jens Jorgensen started on the mound for M-CHS and pitched three and one-thirds innings while allowing four earned runs and striking out nine batters. McDonnell pitched two and two-thirds of an inning in relief and allowed three earned runs while striking out five batters.
With their record now at 4-1 overall, the Panthers will hit the road to face Delta High School on March 30 before returning home for a matchup against Aztec High School on April 4.
M-CHS will open league play with a home doubleheader against Alamosa on April 6.
