With the flick of his wrist, center fielder Caden Wood made the final catch of the Class 3A Region 6 tournament on Saturday, ending two solid wins for the Bayfield Wolverines.
After two games of aggressive hitting and steady defensive plays, BHS is now heading to the state’s Elite Eight in Greeley on Friday.
“We’re putting our names back on the map,” said assistant coach Clay Miller, referring to last year’s attempt at a state run that stalled at regionals. “We’re the real deal.”
Stymied by two losses in Alamosa on May 7 that cost them the Intermountain League title, the Wolverines regrouped and roared back to life Saturday in Hotchkiss against Lafayette’s Peak to Peak in the first game of Region 6 action, thumping the Pumas 9-5.
They sealed the regional title by defeating their North Fork High School hosts by an even bigger margin, 9-3.
Bayfield will now make the 270-mile trek to Greeley and face Lutheran High School of Parker at 11:30 a.m. Friday at Greeley Central High School. The state tournament will be double elimination.
“After losing to Alamosa, it was kind of a wake-up call,” said junior Andy Monger, who recorded several outs for the Wolverines on Saturday while playing left field. “We can do it, especially the first round against Lutheran. I think that will turn a lot of heads.”
This week in practice, the players said they will focus on batting.
“We gotta hit to win,” coach Miller said during a chilly practice on Monday in Bayfield. “We’ll be facing the best pitching we’ve seen all year.”
The team needs to focus on consistency, as well, Monger added.
“It’s the little stuff,” he said. “We need to make those routine plays and stay hot.”
For two of the team’s four seniors, making it to state is the welcome culmination to their four-year careers, minus the sophomore season they lost to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It’s amazing,” said Devin Avery, who hit a solo home run against Peak to Peak, followed by fellow senior Isaac Ross, who hit another one out of the park in center field. “It’s a little unreal, I guess.”
“We need to practice hard,” added senior third baseman Austin Twedt. “Just play our game.”
Avery said it can be disconcerting to be a small public school from Southwest Colorado facing the private academy powerhouses that can recruit players from around the region. But he thinks the Wolverines can hold their own.
“We can’t be too intimidated by those private schools,” he said.
One plus for Bayfield is pitching, said head coach Bert Miller.
The Wolverines have two seniors on the mound, Avery and Ross, and three juniors – Caden Wood, Jackson Queen and Lance Mazur.
“It’s a nice luxury to have that extra pitching,” Bert Miller said. “Our pitching has been solid all year.”
Wood will take the mound Friday against Lutheran after he pitched relief in the game against Peak to Peak on Saturday, with Queen pitching most of the first game and earning the win.
Austin Twedt and Ross led the contest in batting, both hitting .667 against Peak to Peak. Avery and Chamblee hit .500, and Queen hit .333.
“Those were the two best games we’ve played all year,” Bert Miller said of the regional wins. “This is a good bunch of kids. They deserve that good win.”
Playing at second base, Ross made an excellent double play to end the seventh inning for the Wolverines against Peak to Peak, sending them to the regional final.
In game two, the Wolverines came out on fire against the North Fork Miners, who had defeated Strasburg, 8-5, earlier that day to make it to the regional final.
With both Nic and Austin Twedt getting walks, Ross started the Bayfield hitting festival with a single, followed by a long single by Noah Chamblee that brought home both Twedts. Mazur and Wood both hit singles, then Queen doubled deep to center field and brought home Chamblee and Mazur. Avery then hit a single that brought Queen home, leading to a 5-0 Bayfield lead in the top of the first. After that, the Wolverines never really looked back. BHS scored two more runs in the second inning, with Chamblee hitting one out to the fence to bring in Nic Twedt.
Isaac Ross pitched six innings with a 3.50 ERA, with Mazur taking over in the seventh.
Mazur led the team in hitting in the second win, batting .750. Austin Twedt, Queen, Devin Candelaria and Chamblee hit .333, and Caden Wood hit .250.
Wood’s game-winning catch capped a day of top-notch fielding for Bayfield. Rotating outfielders Monger, Mazur and Candelaria caught almost all the balls hit their way, while Chamblee provided the usual steady coverage at first. Rounding out the Wolverine starters were Austin Twedt at third, brother Nic Twedt catching, and Mazur, Ross and Queen switching out duties at second base and shortstop.
The Wolverine bus leaves at 7 a.m. Thursday for Greeley so the team can stop and practice in Buena Vista en route to Greeley.
Bayfield parents and fans are welcome to send the team off Thursday morning at the roundabout on La Plata County Road 501.
Bayfield was the No. 11 seed for the regional round, but reseeded at No. 6 for state. Eaton is No. 1, followed by University, Lutheran, Sterling, Resurrection Christian, the Wolverines, Manitou Springs and Colorado Academy.
