Durango received great starting pitching three days in a row, and it finally paid off Saturday.

Playing in the last-place game of the Piedra Vista Invitational at Ricketts Park in Farmington, the Durango High School baseball team secured an 8-2 win against New Mexico’s Valencia High School to finish the weekend 1-2 and move to 2-4 overall this season.

Durango totaled 12 hits Saturday and played clean defense behind starting pitcher Lawrence Mayberry with only one error. Mayberry was the winning pitcher in a complete-game performance. He allowed five hits.

Mayberry had four strikeouts, two walks and hit one batter. He also went 2-for-3 at the plate. All 12 of Durango’s hits were singles.

“We haven’t been getting a lot of extra base hits yet,” DHS head coach Eric Baker said. “We’re hitting it hard but haven’t found gaps.”

Baker said his team played a little small ball with bunts and stolen bases Saturday, and quality at-bats led to a string of hits, especially in a four-run fourth inning.

Andrew Selser had another strong performance, going 3-for-4 at the plate. Max Hyson and Peyton Woolverton both went 2-for-4.

Durango used four pitchers all weekend, with Dylan Carlson, Mayberry and Selser all strong in starts. Tyler Ruetschle pitched to two batters in Friday’s loss to Los Alamos. Baker was impressed with the pitchers but said he will have to find ways to get the team’s other pitchers some bullpen innings this week after they didn’t see mound time this weekend.

“The starting pitchers, all three of them, have been outstanding,” Baker said. “It’s a great thing to have, but we have two or three other pitchers champing at the big to get on the mound. It’s a mixed blessing.”

Durango will have more than a week to prepare for a March 28 trip to Denver North.

“We will scrimmage and work on a few things and be ready for Denver,” Baker said. “If we can play good defense and keep the offensive moving along we will be pretty good once we get to league.”

jlivingston@durangoherald.com