The regional brackets are set. The final march toward a state baseball championship can officially begin.
No. 4 Durango (11-8) will clash with No. 1 Pueblo West (14-4) at 10 a.m. Saturday in Class 4A Region 8, while No. 2 Golden (13-6) and No. 3 Glenwood Springs (13-6) will meet in the other regional semifinal. The winners will play at 3 p.m. in the regional championship with a spot in the state tournament on the line.
Durango finished No. 29 in the RPI rankings. Golden was actually one spot higher than Pueblo West in the RPI at No. 8, but it is the Cyclones who will host what promises to be a competitive regional.
DHS finished fourth in the 5A/4A Southwestern League, a league that saw champion Fruita Monument earn hosting rights in Class 5A.
“It’s helpful to play in a tough league,” DHS head coach Eric Baker said. “Teams that roll through league every year can have trouble at regionals.”
Pueblo West went 9-1 in the South Central league to claim the title over the other Pueblo schools. The Cyclones are on a nine-game winning streak and are 7-1 at home this season. DHS has played well on the road, going 5-4.
The teams have a pair of common opponents this year. Pueblo West beat Aztec 16-8 and Grand Junction Central 11-0. This year, Durango owns wins of 6-5 and 9-8 against Aztec, as well as a 4-1 win and an 8-7 loss to Grand Junction Central.
“Pueblo West has been a quality team for a number of years,” Baker said. “Their program has got quite a bit of history of being in the state tournament and going deep, and I expect them to be pretty tough. They’re hosting for a reason.”
Pueblo West senior Zach Thomas has presented problems to opposing pitchers. He boasts a .488 average and four homers to go with six doubles. He has 21 runs batted in. Junior Tyler Desclusin has a stout .552 average and a team-high 29 RBIs to go with 29 runs scored. He has 10 doubles and three triples on the year. Jayden Cordova, another junior, has hit at a .536 average with 25 RBIs, 25 runs, three homers, five triples and four doubles.
Pueblo West senior Ty Garcia is 6-1 on the mound this year with a 2.39 earned-run average. Sophomore Kaleb Woltz is 3-0 in 10 appearances with one save in relief.
Durango will have its top-two starting pitchers, sophomore Fynn Hyson and senior Gavin Mestas, ready to go along with a stable of arms in relief.
As a staff, DHS has a sterling 109/46 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and the Demons have played clean defense as a whole for much of the season with a .938 fielding percentage.
“Our pitchers have been consistent and tough enough,” Baker said. “They have not walked anybody or given up freebies. We emphasize those things – throwing strikes down in the zone and playing defense behind them.”
Durango’s offense has been hot with a team batting average of .345 and an average of more than seven runs scored per game. Senior Ryan Genualdi is .324 at the plate this year with 19 RBIs, 13 runs, one homer, three triples and eight doubles. Kegan D’Aleo boasts a .429 average with 17 RBIs, 15 runs and seven extra-base hits. Mestas sports a .459 average with 28 runs scored, 10 RBIs and 10 extra-base hits. Six Demons have double-digit RBIs this year.
“We’re swinging it up and down the lineup and getting production throughout,” Baker said. “We’re not depending on a couple of guys in the lineup to deliver every time, and that makes a huge difference.”
If the Demons can upset Pueblo West, a tough matchup would again wait in the championships. Golden comes from the ultra-competitive Jeffco League that was won by Valor Christian (16-2). Golden actually placed fifth in the league and still made the postseason. Glenwood Springs went 10-2 in the Western Slope League, won by Palisade.
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
