A rocky start from the Durango High School baseball team dug a hole and gave Pueblo West some early confidence, which the Cyclones rode to a 9-1 victory in the semifinals of the Class 4A Region 8 tournament Saturday morning in Pueblo.
“They jumped on us pretty good,” DHS head coach Eric Baker said. “Gavin (Mestas) threw pretty well and they didn’t have a ton of hits early. I think we were a little jittery at the start and didn’t settle down. They got three runs on us and got more comfortable. It’s easier to play when you have a few run lead. They just put the ball in play and capitalized on any mistakes we made.”
The Cyclones (15-4) finished the day with nine hits. They scored three runs in the first, added one in the third, then three more in the fifth and two in the sixth.
At the plate, DHS struggled against the Cyclones’ lefty Ty Garcia and finished the day with only three hits.
“He wasn’t overpowering, just a good, solid pitcher,” Baker said of Garcia. “He hit his spots and kept us off balance enough to keep us from putting some hits together.”
Garcia, a senior, went all seven innings and needed only 84 pitches to get through the game. The lone run against him came on a solo home run from DHS senior catcher Max Hyson in the seventh inning. Garcia struck out three Demons against three walks.
Gus Kidd and Dawson Marcum accounted for the Demons’ other two hits, with both juniors recording a single.
Baker said the Demons had some hard hits into the gaps in the outfield, but the Cyclones’ center fielder was able to chase down the ball to keep the Demons off the bases.
Mestas went five innings for DHS. He allowed seven runs – four earned – on eight hits and four walks. He struck out five Cyclones. Kegan D’Aleo pitched one inning in relief and gave up two runs – one earned- on one hit and two walks with no strikeouts.
Pueblo West’s Brodie Blackford went 2-for-4 with two runs batted in, Dalton Davis was 2-for-3, Tyler Declusin went 2-for-3 with one RBI and two runs scored, and Tyler Barth was 1-for-2 with a triple and two runs scored. Isaiah Avila drove in one run for the Cyclones.
The loss ends the Demons season with an 11-9 overall record.
“It was a season where the team scrapped all year long,” Baker said. “We had some ups and downs, but I’m awful proud of how the boys fought all year in every game. Even when things weren’t falling our way, they kept a good attitude.”
The Demons will lose 10 seniors from this season, which leaves a big hole in the roster. But Baker expects his group of returning players have learned a lot from the group of seniors as far as what it takes to be successful on the state level.
“It’s always hard to say goodbye to the seniors. This is the first group of seniors who have been with me for four years,” Baker said. “Those guys put in a lot of work, and as student-athletes we ask a lot of them. It’s been a bit of a grind, and I really appreciate the fact they could stay in there and keep going.
“They laid a good groundwork to show the underclassmen what it takes to compete in our league, make the playoffs and compete in the playoffs.”
kschneider@durangoherald.com
