Even if he wasn’t directly aware of the fact that most of Bayfield Baseball’s core had been playing together since childhood, Delta senior Luke Gastineau could sense – and definitely appreciated – the Wolverines’ unspoken bond.
“That ‘team’ relationship … if you don’t have that, you don’t know what you can do as a team,” he said, following DHS’ come-from-behind ouster of BHS in the elimination phase of the Class 3A State Tournament’s ‘Great Eight’ round. “It just keeps the energy up in the dugout – it’s probably the best part of the game.”
“Part of our deal is to be loose; you can get kids tense or fired up, but sometimes that backfires,” Bayfield head coach Bert Miller said early in the season. “We work hard on things we need to fix, but if you’re not having fun playing baseball, you can’t have fun. That’s been my opinion my whole life.”
Having helped Bayfield compile a 50-18 overall (21-3 Intermountain League) record during their four years on varsity (including the Coronavirus-canceled 2020 campaign), three graduated seniors represented the program well when it came time to collect postseason awards. Pitcher/shortstop Lance Mazur, pitcher/second baseman Jackson Queen and first baseman/pitcher Noah Chamblee were clear-cut First Team All-IML picks, and on June 21 the trio received All-3A recognition from the Colorado High School Activities Association. Mazur was named First Team All-State while Queen and Chamblee scored Second Team honors.
Classmates Nic Twedt (catcher) and Caden Wood (infield/pitcher) were also named First Team All-IML. Now-sophomore Tavian Box (third baseman/pitcher) received Honorable Mention All-League.
“Our supporters are great; they love baseball,” Wood said late in the season. “We love it, and we’re thankful for them.”
“Our team thrives a lot on camaraderie,” Twedt said. “When we play (well) as a team … there’s nothing better than that.”
Atop the All-IML list were Montezuma-Cortez skipper Tim Passell and junior P/1B/3B Miles Frost, voted the Intermountain’s Coach-of-the-Year, and Player-of-the-Year respectively after the Panthers matched BHS’ 7-1 record in league play (Bayfield had the advantage in head-to-head run differential) and a state-qualifying 22-6 overall finish.
Statewide, it came as no surprise that Eaton senior infielder Walker Martin was named Class 3A’s Player-of-the-Year and Todd Hernandez Coach-of-the-Year after the Reds finished 29-0 and secured a third straight state championship. Since the pandemic-shortened 2021 season began, EHS stands 78-3 overall and will start next spring on a 41-game winning streak.
More First Team IML members:
Montezuma-Cortez – seniors Evan LaMunyon and Jake Blackmer, freshmen Cory Carver and Darren Daves; Alamosa – seniors Kade Jones, Michael Madril and Kasey Jones; Pagosa Springs – juniors Riley Laugel and Hunter Pouyer; Centauri – seniors Jaren Crowther and Abbey Smith.
IML Honorable Mentions: M-CHS – senior Braden Hallman; AHS – junior Grady West; PSHS – senior Kaison Clifford; CHS – seniors Estevan Vega and Connor King.
Additional honors: LaMunyon and Frost were also named First Team All-3A, and Carver was an Honorable Mention pick for MCHS. Crowther, Laugel and Kade Jones all received All-State Honorable Mention salutes.
Ignacio junior catcher/pitcher Phillip Quintana received Honorable Mention All-2A.
Correction: It had been previously reported that IHS’ Stoney White Thunder had been named Second Team All-San Juan Basin League for the 2023 season. The freshman was, in fact, a First Team All-SJBL pick.
