FARMINGTON – The Cleveland High baseball team outslugged Farmington High by a score of 16-10 Tuesday afternoon at Ricketts Park in a District 1-5A showdown that featured 34 base hits and a pair of outstanding performances at the top and bottom of the Storm lineup.
Cleveland’s win, combined with Piedra Vista losing by a final of 10-7 on the road at Cibola, leaves Rio Rancho alone at the top of the district standings, one game ahead of both Piedra Vista and Cleveland with only a handful of games before the end of the regular season.
Leadoff hitter Anthony Del Angel’s towering grand slam over the left field wall in the top of the fourth inning was part of an eight-run outburst by the Storm, who entered the frame trailing by a score of 4-2. Del Angel, one of New Mexico’s leading prep baseball players and last year’s recipient of the state’s Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year award, is already committed to the University of Oklahoma.
Junior Peyton Noel went 4-for-5 at the plate batting in the nine-hole. Noel scored three runs and drove in a pair as every batter in the Storm lineup recorded at least one base hit in the contest.
The Scorpions (8-15 overall, 1-6 District) jumped out to an early lead in the first after Gabe Matamoros reached on a passed ball and scored following consecutive errors by pitcher Xavier Vasquez and Noel. Farmington extended the lead to 4-1 in the second behind a bases-loaded walk by Matamoros and a two-run single from Darnell Joe.
Cleveland’s offense exploded in the fourth, turning a two-run deficit into a six-run lead. The Storm sent 14 batters to the plate in the top of the frame, adding four more runs in the frame, including a two-run single by Caleb Sandoval and two runs following a Farmington error at third base.
The Scorpions attempted a comeback in the sixth, plating four runs to cut the deficit to 11-8. Rock Kalcich and LaTavien Howard each drove in runs, while Danny Hagstrom scored on a throwing error during Kalcich’s single.
However, Cleveland (20-2 overall, 4-2 District) pulled away in the seventh. Noel doubled home two runs and later scored on an error by Darnell Joe, followed by a Caleb Budagher sacrifice fly that pushed the lead to 16-8.
Farmington added two runs in the bottom of the seventh on back-to-back RBI doubles by Joe and Hagstrom, but the rally fell short.
The 26 combined runs scored in the contest could have gone much higher. The Storm left 13 runners on base while the Scorpions stranded 12 over the course of the seven-inning contest.
Joe finished the day with three RBIs for the Scorpions, while Hagstrom, Howard, Calob Schofield and Sataurus Griego each contributed multi-hit performances.
Isaac Brito launched two home runs, including a game-tying blast in the fifth and a two-run shot in the sixth, to lead Cibola to a 10-7 comeback victory at home over Piedra Vista.
The Panthers (20-3 overall, 5-2 District 1-5A) appeared to be in control early, jumping out to a 5-1 lead by the fourth inning. Amasi Griego provided the spark with a two-run single in the second, while Alexis Hernandez helped his own cause with a two-run single in the fourth.
Cibola began its climb back in the fifth. After Tyler Wright drove in a run with a single to center, Brito connected on a fly ball to center field for a two-run home run, knotting the game at 5-5.
The Cougars’ offense exploded for five runs in the bottom of the sixth to break the stalemate. Wright again came through with the go-ahead, two-run single that scored Eddie Blanshine and Dylan Gutierrez. Daniel Kean followed with an RBI single before Brito capped the outburst with his second home run of the day, a towering shot to left field that extended the lead to 10-5.
Piedra Vista attempted a final-inning rally as Kyle Murphy led off the seventh with a solo home run to left. The Panthers added another run when JW Bayless doubled and later scored on an error, but Ryan Hutchinson settled in to strike out Zack Zweschper looking to end the contest.
Brito finished the day with four RBIs and two home runs to pace the Cougars. Piedra Vista was led by Bayless and Eliyas Barton, who each recorded two hits in the loss. Hernandez and Tony Reynolds shared duties on the mound for the Panthers, while Hutchinson earned the save in relief for Cibola.