Meeker Rockies continue baseball winning streak

MEEKER I Hard work and great coaching has certainly paid off for the Meeker Rockies as they continue working as a team to defeat their opponents. With wins last week against Craig and Rangely, the Meeker Rockies are on a roll.
On June 13, the team took the field at Loudy Simpson Park to play the Craig No. 3 team. Kale Burke had a great game hitting two doubles, advancing runners to add to the score. Chris Scherbarth pitched a fantastic three innings, striking out all the batters except one. Hitting a home run and a triple, Scherbarth proved he can hit just as well as he can pitch. With Cole Rogers on the mound for the last two innings, Scherbarth (at shortstop) and Burke (at second) were able to stop the two advancing runners. Rogers struck out all three of his batters in and hit a triple in the last inning, allowing three runners to advance to home plate. Jake Shelton, playing first base, hit two singles and walked, allowing runners to go home to advance the score. Elijah Deming was a hitting force, with two singles and a double, also advancing runners. As catcher, Deming continues to display his abilities by not allowing Scherbarth’s fast and hard pitches past his mitt. Austin Mortenson started the game with a walk and continued to walk the next two times he was up to bat, showing he knows how to watch the ball, and adding points to the score. Jeffrey Cole-George contributed to the score when he refused to swing for anything other than a strike, with a total of three walks in the game. Also proving he has an eagle eye was Estevan Barreno as he watched the ball for three walks. He also hit a single in the fourth inning. Justin George earned two walks in the game. Pake Burke hit hard for an RBI in the last inning, ending the game with a 15-0 score.
The team traveled to Rangely June 15 to play ball. Though the weather was inconsistent, the Meeker Rockies were not. Up against a fast pitcher, the Rockies never backed down and proved they can hit any ball thrown at them. All players either walked or got a hit at some point in the game. With Deming gone, Shelton stepped in to catch Scherbarth’s pitches. Scherbarth had an amazing game, striking out a majority of his hitters and earning two home runs himself. Shelton stepped in to relieve Scherbarth in the fourth inning, with George catching for him. There were some great fielding plays in the game. When Rangely hit the ball to right field, George stopped the ball, relaying it to Mortenson who threw to Shelton at home. Shelton tagged the advancing runner for the out. In another play the ball was hit to Mortenson on second base, who tossed it to Rogers at first for the out. Kale Burke proved he could take one for the team, or take two for the team, when he was hit by two wild pitches, earning him a walk to first each time. Barreno, Pake Burke, and Cole-George all contributed to the score by earning walks against Rangely’s tough pitcher.
Meeker Rockies coaches Dave and Sandy Scherbarth were proud as their team posted a 12-3 win.
This week’s games consist of 2 rain-out games which will conclude the regular season. The tournament for this division begins on June 27 in Craig.
The Meeker Classic Baseball Tournament for 8- to 10-year-olds begins tomorrow. Both Meeker teams will play, with five other teams from the area joining the tournament. Friday and Saturday each team will play a total of four games. The top four teams advance to a single elimination format on Sunday.