RANGELY I The Panthers’ baseball team saw its stellar season come to a close this past Saturday.
Rangely, which won the Class 2A Western Slope League title to earn a top seed in the District 1 and 2 Tournament, made an early exit from the four-team event with a 12-9 loss to Ignacio in Cortez.
Ignacio, which eventually advanced to the Class 2A Regionals with a 10-9 victory against Paonia later in the day, pounded out 16 hits against Rangely. Six players in Ignacio’s lineup had at least two hits.
Rangely, which finished the season with a 15-4 overall record, picked up a pair of non-league victories against Meeker on May 5. The Panthers won the first game, 22-13, before prevailing 15-6 in the nightcap.
Those were the final victories of the season in what served as a milestone campaign for Rangely. In all, the Panthers outscored their opponents 250-131. It also served as a season of recovery and establishment for Rangely, which posted a 5-15 overall record just two years ago.
Senior Adam Dahl finished as the team’s leading hitter with a .644 batting average. His seven home runs tied Kindal Cushman for the team lead in home runs. Cushman’s 32 RBIs were also a team high.
Dahl and Cushman, along with Travis Witherell and Jason Stults, played their final games in a Rangely uniform. Eleven players from this year’s team — including five freshman and four sophomores — are slated to return for the 2010-11 season.
