The Durango High School baseball team hosted Bayfield in a county rivalry on Tuesday at DHS. Two big innings, however, helped the Wolverines prevail 8-3.
“Anytime you get to come in and play (DHS coach Rob) Coddington and the boys, it’s going to be fun; they’re always well coached,” said Bayfield head coach Bert Miller. “I think we’re playing fantastic right now for not being on a field. Our defense looked OK.” Miller said the Wolverines hadn’t had one practice outside on a field before playing Durango, limiting what the team has been able to work on.
Fielding ended up being a key factor in Tuesday’s game, with Bayfield only committing one error while DHS made five, including a couple at critical times.
A DHS miscue in the outfield helped Bayfield take a 4-0 lead in the top of the second.
With two BHS runners on base, Durango pitcher Tanner Coddington nearly got out of the inning without taking any damage. He struck out a Wolverine for the second out. Nic Twedt then stepped up to the plate and hit a rope into center field. Durango chased the ball down and got a glove on it, but was unable to make the catch, allowing both Tavian Box and Dante Candelaria to score while Twedt reached third.
Lance Mazur followed with an RBI single to bring Twedt home and then Caden Wood hit an RBI double to score Mazur and put Bayfield up, 4-0.
Liam Southerland walked to start the bottom of the second for DHS, but Mazur struck out the next three Demons.
BHS then doubled its lead in the top of the third, highlighted with a two-RBI triple from Twedt. DHS also made an error that helped Bayfield get the scoring going.
Durango got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third, getting a two-RBI double off the right field fence from AJ Folk.
Folk then took over on the mound for DHS and the lefty kept Bayfield from scoring anymore.
Bayfield’s pitchers, however, also kept DHS from scoring until the bottom of the seventh and then only allowed one Demon run to finish on top.
“We’re starting to come around,” Miller said. “I’m proud of the way we’re playing, but we’ve got a long way to go.”
Mazur pitched six innings, allowing just two hits, two walks and two runs while striking out 12 Demons to earn the win. Caden Wood threw the seventh for BHS, allowing one run to score on one hit before closing the door.
“Lance has been amazing,” Miller said. “He has two losses versus the No. 1 and 2 teams in the state, but he kept us in those games. And Wood came in to mop up the seventh and did what he needed to do.”
Twedt hit a double, a triple, drove in two runs and scored twice for Bayfield.
“Nic had a big base hit and a big bunt,” Miller said. “His speed is amazing; he’s the fastest kid I’ve ever coached.”
Mazur had two hits and scored one. Noah Chamblee and Wood both had one hit and one RBI. Jackson Queen had a base hit and scored once. Micah Cornelia had a hit, a run and an RBI while Candelaria and Box both scored one run.
For DHS, Tagert Bardin hit a triple and scored one run. Michael Benner had a hit and a scored a run. Folk went 1-3 with a double and two RBIs. Ian Szura scored the team’s third run while Gavin Hamlin also had a base hit for the Demons.
Benner, Hamlin and Twedt each stole a base.
Coddington threw three innings for DHS, giving up five hits, three walks and striking out three. Only two of the eight runs BHS scored on him were earned.
Folk pitched four scoreless innings, giving up three walks while striking out nine.
Bayfield, the No. 9 ranked team in Class 3A, improved to 5-2 with the win. Durango, which received votes in the latest Class 4A poll, slipped to 4-3 overall.
Next, BHS is scheduled to play in Buena Vista High School’s tournament, taking on Meeker (2-1) Friday and BVHS (3-1) on Saturday.
Durango will be home again for its next game, hosting the Delta Panthers (3-2) at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
