CLASS 1A BASEBALL DISTRICT REPORT
BY: KERRY SHERMAN
The regular season in Class 1A wraps up this week, and district tournaments will reduce the field to 16 for the regional bracket. Some teams will finish their regular season slates early in the week before starting tournament play. All rankings are from the Wednesday morning release of the CHSAA Selection and Seeding Index.
DISTRICT ONE (SATURDAY) AT ADAMS STATE UNIVERSITY
Nucla (#18) and Dove Creek (#19) meet on Wednesday to conclude the regular season, as they play a doubleheader. They have already locked up the top two seeds in the district bracket, in that order. They played last Friday, with Nucla taking a 9-3 win, thanks to a five-run top of the first. Jace Bonacquista and Jacob Davis had two RBI apiece for the Mustangs. Kycen Gritz had two of Dove Creek’s five hits.
In the district tournament, Nucla will tangle with #28 Sierra Grande in one semifinal. The Mustangs won the regular season match-up 18-2 behind a double and three RBI from Daniel Zunich. Hayden Branham and Ryker Collins added two RBI apiece. Rolando Najera doubled in a run for the Panthers.
Dove Creek drew #20 La Veta in the other semifinal. The Bulldogs took an 18-3 victory just about two weeks ago. Gritz drove in six runs and scored three, while Miguel Rivera had a pair of RBI for the Redhawks.
The winner of the tournament is the only one guaranteed a spot in the regional bracket, since the district has fewer than five teams. Everyone else will have to earn an at large bid that will be determined by the final Seeding Index.
DISTRICT TWO (SATURDAY) AT SPURGEON FIELD
There were two quarterfinal games on Tuesday, with #21 Custer County beating #26 Elbert 13-6, and #16 Kiowa downing #29 Cripple Creek-Victor 19-4. In the first of those games, the Bobcats built an early 9-3 lead, scoring three in the first, five in the second, and one in the third. In the other game, Kiowa pounded out 17 hits, seven of them doubles. Caden Watt had one of them and also drove in four runs.
Simla (#8) is the top seed in the bracket and the Cubs will meet Custer County in one semifinal. The Cubs won the regular season contest 15-5, as they overcame an early 4-0 deficit. Logan Rayfield and Ethan Kissam played key roles, with Rayfield collecting three RBI and Kissam scoring three runs. Wade Pierce hit a solo home run for Custer County and Lucas Bradford had two RBI.
The other semifinal will have #11 Evangel Christian Academy facing Kiowa. They met twice in the regular season, with ECA winning 11-1 and 10-6. The first game saw Anderson Schultz allow one run on three hits in five innings. He struck out nine and walked one. Ryker Robinett drove in the lone run for Kiowa. Watt and Robinett each had two RBI in the second clash, but the Eagles countered with two RBI from Wyatt Barger and three runs scored by Nate Lucia.
The top two finishers will both qualify for the regional field. Simla and ECA are both in position to receive an at large berth with their current standings in the Seeding Index, should either not make the finals. Kiowa sits right on the bubble, and would be bumped if a district champion happens to finish outside of the top-16.
DISTRICT THREE (SATURDAY) AT FLATIRONS ACADEMY
The championship game will feature #1 Flatirons Academy and #14 Rocky Mountain Lutheran, with only the winner being guaranteed a regional berth. However, both are in position to get into the bracket with an at large spot.
Flatirons Academy rolled to a 20-4 win over the Eagles early in the season, with Braxton Kelley homering, and the duo of Conner Odell and Caleb Doughty both driving in three runs. Those two also had four stolen bases apiece. Noah Lile stole three bases for Rocky Mountain Lutheran, and Gage Rabus stole two.
DISTRICT FOUR (SATURDAY) AT LAS ANIMAS
Quarterfinal games were played on Tuesday, with three of the top four seeds picking up wins. The top seed, #2 McClave blanked #24 Granada, 11-0. The Cardinals blew things open with an eight-run third. Kielan Mallard struck out nine in three perfect innings, pushing him over 100 Ks on the season, and over 200 for his career. Ryan Steinbrunn provided plenty of run support with a homer and three RBI.
The Cards will meet #10 Wiley, the fifth seed in the bracket, after the Panthers upset the four seed, #17 Holly 7-5 in nine innings. That avenged an 8-7 loss to the Wildcats just more than a week earlier. Kendale Mauch racked up three RBI for the Panthers on Tuesday, while Devonte Pizarro and Grant Mauch stole three bases apiece. G. Mauch also recorded a dozen strikeouts in 6.2 innings.
McClave won both ends of a doubleheader with Wiley, 12-3 and 22-2. Mallard and Drew Howe combined on a no-hitter in the opener, with the Panthers drawing 11 walks and getting hit twice by pitches. In game two, the Cards had a pair of 10-run frames. Oliver Hemphill had six RBI, and Howe added five. Dixie Bitner had the lone RBI for Wiley.
The other side of the bracket saw #5 Eads, the second seed, get past #22 Cheyenne Wells by a 6-1 count. The Eagles broke a 1-1 tie with five runs in the fifth. Adyn Hough was in command on the hill, allowing one unearned run on six hits in the complete game victory. He struck out 12 and walked one. It was the third time this season that Hough recorded at least 10 strikeouts. The junior is three away from 200 in his career.
The third seed, #9 Stratton, moved past #23 Baca County14-4. The Eagles got 13 of their runs in the first three inning, including six in the third. Dominic Hornung and Trevor Moore both notched three RBI, with Moore connecting on a home run. Hornung and Von Isenbart scored three runs apiece.
Eads won the Clash of Eagles 12-0 just more than two weeks ago. Hough threw a seven-hit shutout, punching out six and not walking anyone. Hough also had three RBI, as did Johnathan Vasquez. V Isenbart had three hits for Stratton.
This is another district with the top two finishers being guaranteed a spot in the regional bracket. All four semifinalist should be in the field as all four are in the top-10 of the Seeding Index.
DISTRICT FIVE (SATURDAY) AT PRAIRIE HIGH SCHOOL
First round games will be played on Wednesday, with a play-in game between #25 Weldon Valley and #27 Briggsdale in Haxtun. The winner advances to face the top seed, #3 Haxtun in the quarterfinals later in the day. The Warriors won by forfeit early in the season, and then recently split a doubleheader with Briggsdale. The Falcons won the opener 10-7 and Weldon Valley getting the second game 16-8.
Kyle Lederhause drove in two runs for Briggsdale in the opener, while Brevyn Starner had three for the Warriors. Devin Quint and August Filter both had three RBI in the game two win by Weldon Valley. Jeremiah Sparks and Ryott Simmonds each had two RBI for the Falcons in the loss.
Haxtun did not face either team in the regular season.
In the 4/5 match-up, also in Haxtun, #7 Otis meets up with #12 Prairie. They split a doubleheader in late-March, with Otis winning 6-4, and the Mustangs taking game two 8-5. The Bulldogs stole 11 bases in game one, three by Gavin Price, who also got the win on the mound. Mason Holloway had a double and an RBI for Prairie. The Mustangs led game two 8-0 after four, but Otis rallied with five in the fifth. Neither would score again. Owen Kilmer scored three times for the Mustangs, while Price drove in three for Otis.
The bottom half of the bracket was scheduled to be played in Akron, with the #4 Rams hosting #15 Caliche. The teams split a doubleheader earlier in the season, with Caliche winning the first 12-8, and the Rams grabbing a 11-1 win for the split. The Buffs scored five runs over the last two innings for the game one victory. Colton Cochran and Tayten Gerk both had four hits for Caliche. Clay Axtell homered for the Rams. Axtell hit another home run in game two, backing Mason Porteus, who allowed one run on five hits in the complete game victory. Gerk tripled and drove in one for the Buffs.
Merino (#6) faces #13 Peetz in the other quarterfinal in Akron. It will be the first meeting of the year between the two.
While only the top two finishers are locked in to a spot in the regional field, as many as seven teams could make the bracket. Only the winner of the play-in game is outside of the top-15 of the Seeding Index.
MileHigh Prep Report 