Leading off a last-gasp fifth inning, Ignacio’s Elliott Hendren broke up Bayfield’s no-hitter with a clean single into center field. The Bobcats, however, couldn’t bring him around as BHS preserved a 12-0 victory Friday at Wolverine Field.
Four Bayfield seniors combined to hurl a two-hit, Senior Day shutout, with starting pitcher Lance Mazur (IP, 0 H, 2 BB, 3 K) earning the win. Bayfield’s regular catcher Nic Twedt allowed a Devante Montoya single into short left immediately after Hendren’s knock.
Initially manning second base, Jackson Queen (0 H, 2 BB, 4 K) threw the second and third innings, and escaped a bases-loaded jam in the latter. Queen struck out freshman Ambrose Valdez – who started at first base with junior regular Rylan Maez unavailable because of illness – to strand Eppie Quintana, who reached via error with two out, at third.
Mazur also got Valdez swinging to end the guests’ first, leaving two-out walk recipients Stoney White Thunder and Phillip Quintana aboard.
Beginning the game at shortstop, then ending it wearing catcher’s gear, BHS’ Caden Wood (IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K) followed Queen’s stint on the mound with a 1-2-3 fourth. The Wolverines – ranked No. 5 in the week-starting CHSAANow.com Class 3A poll – quickly racked up their last four runs in the bottom half of the inning.
Faced with saving enough pitching for the next morning’s home doubleheader versus possible 2A postseason-district opponent Trinidad, IHS head coach Duke Baker had little choice but leave freshman White Thunder (L; 3+ IP, 9 H, 12 R, 3 BB, HB, 0 K) on the mound as long as possible, before bringing Montoya (IP, 0 H, 0 R, BB, K) in from shortstop.
Bayfield boss Bert Miller, meanwhile, decided to give Twedt a cameo on the hill to close out the contest. Twedt, after being hit by a pitch, also scored the game’s first run by stealing second base and somehow sprinting all the way from second to home after seeing a White Thunder delivery sail wild and away from catcher Phillip Quintana.
Able to present some quality breaking pitches, Twedt encountered trouble when a wild pitch to Eppie Quintana allowed Hendren to gain third base and Montoya second. Twedt settled down and froze Quintana (0-3) with a called third strike for the first out. White Thunder (0-0) then drew his third walk in as many plate appearances to load the bases, but Twedt again avoided allowing a run by freezing Phillip Quintana (0-1, 2 BB) with a very low full-count offering.
Twedt (IP, 2 H, 0 R, BB, 2 K) followed by getting Valdez to hit a fielder’s-choice bouncer to third baseman Tavian Box to conclude the afternoon’s proceedings.
Batting ninth in Baker’s order, Hendren ended up 1-for-2. Leadoff man Montoya finished 1-3.
Wolverine senior first baseman Noah Chamblee smacked a two-run single in BHS’ fourth, and ended up 2-3 with a run. Twedt (1-3, 2 R) tripled to lead off Bayfield’s game-breaking six-run third. Mazur (1-2, BB, 2 R) tripled to trigger the fourth. Wood ended up 1-2 with a walk, two runs and one RBI. Box (1-2, BB) tripled leading off the home half of the second and scored via a sacrifice fly off the bat of Micah Cornelia (0-0, BB, R, RBI).
Dante Candelaria went 1-2 with a two-RBI double in the Wolverines’ third and also scored in the onslaught when senior Andrés “Andy” Monger (1-3, RBI) reached via an infield single plus error – also plating Cornelia – with two out.
Ending White Thunder’s spell on the bump, Queen (1-3, 2 R) scored Bayfield’s final run by legging out a four-base error when Bobcat center fielder Dylan McCaw couldn’t squeeze Queen’s long drive – which also scored Chamblee from second – with no outs in the fourth.
Still 4-0 in Intermountain League play, the Wolverines improved to 12-3 overall with their fifth consecutive conquest. Remaining 3-1 in 2A/1A San Juan Basin battle, Ignacio slipped to 6-5 overall.
