Surprising Oñate to meet No. 1 La Cueva
Knights, Bears reach title game
RIO RANCHO — The defending champs say nobody expected them to be back.
After losing seven players off last year’s Class 6A state championship squad, senior shortstop Stephany Duran admits even the Oñate Knights themselves might not have fully believed until this week they would get back to Lobo Field to defend their crown.
But after winning three consecutive elimination games Friday at Cleveland High School, the No. 3 seed Knights proudly carry the underdog tag into today’s championship round against undefeated and topseeded La Cueva (27-0) at 2 p.m. Oñate would have to win twice to take the crown.
“I think we finally believe it in our hearts that we can get this done,” said Duran, whose two-run seventh-inning homer
capped an emphatic 8-3 win over No. 2 Hobbs.
After Hobbs beat Oñate (25-6) earlier in the day in the double-elimination tournament, the Knights battled back to the semifinal game with a 6-3 win over Carlsbad and a dramatic 10-9 victory over No. 12 Cleveland, the host, thanks to a seventh-inning RBI by Martinez.
In the rematch with Hobbs, Martinez was back at it with a three-run home run in the top of the first. But the Eagles (21-9) battled back to pull within 4-3 heading into the final frame.
That was when Duran’s blast deflated the Hobbs rally.
“I just saw a beach ball,” Duran said of the pitch that landed well beyond the outfield fence. “I just wanted to get it in play there, but the way I saw it, I knew I could get a hold of it.”
Hobbs senior Zariah Duarte hit a two-run home run in the third that had cut the lead to 4-2.
Class 5A
No. 2 ARTESIA 2, No. 9 ALAMOGORDO 0: At Cleveland High School, senior second baseman Aubree Olguin smashed a tworun double down the leftfield line in the top of the sixth inning in what was otherwise one of the more impressive defensive games of the day in Rio Rancho.
The win for the Bulldogs sets up a championship series rematch with No. 1 Aztec (26-3).
The Tigers sent Artesia (23-7) to the elimination bracket earlier in the day with a 3-2 win that featured a solo home run by Aztec senior CheyAnne Simkins.
The two teams play today at Lobo Field at noon. If Artesia wins, a winner-take-all game will be played at 4 p.m.
Class 4A Championship
No. 1 SILVER 4, No. 5 COBRE 3 (8 inn.): At Lobo Field, Shaianne Aguirre scored on a two-out throwing error in the eighth inning to give the Fighting Colts their seventh consecutive state championship.
Thursday, the top-seeded Colts had been sent to the elimination bracket by their Grant County rival before having to beat the Indians twice Friday for the crown.
It was 7-5 in Game 1, forcing the dramatic finale on Friday.
Silver (27-6) senior left fielder Makayla Guerra had a solo home run in the fourth inning and a pair of walks in the game.
She also became a fivetime state champion as she started playing varsity as an eighth-grader.
Cobre finishes the season 21-10.
1A-3A Championship
No. 2 DEXTER 5, No. 1 LOVING 4: At Lobo Field, the Demons are making it a habit. For the third year in a row, and the second consecutive season over the Falcons, Dexter (24-5) is the small-school state champion, scoring three in the sixth despite only notching one base hit in the inning. Junior pitcher Bryanna Muñoz scored the deciding run in the sixth and from the circle struck out 12.
With the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth, Loving shortstop Alyssa Carrasco hit a basesclearing double to pull the Falcons (23-4) within one. While Loving was able to load the bases again, Dexter retired the side with three strikeouts.
The two teams played six times this season, splitting four in the regular season with Dexter winning twice in the state tournament.