RANGELY I The Rangely Panthers baseball team traveled to Gypsum, Colorado, to take on Battle Mountain High School on Friday, April 15. The non-league game was originally to be played in Edwards, Colorado, at Battle Mountain High School but due to inclement weather in the previous days, the game was played at Eagle Valley High School. The Huskies entered Friday’s game with a 6-4 overall mark and the Panthers came in at 5-5. The Huskies defeated the Panthers in extra innings to a score of 10-9 in eight innings of play.
Seniors Justin Cudo and Keihlin Myers toed the rubber for the Panthers and pitched well but Myers ended up taking the loss on the mound. Cudo went three innings while giving up six earned runs with two walks and five strikeouts. Myers came in for Cudo relief and pitched four and two-thirds innings. Myers gave up four runs, three of them as earned runs, while walking one Huskie hitter and striking out four.
Offensively the Panthers were led by junior Luis Quintana as he recorded two hits, two walks and scored two runs for the Panthers. Cudo also had a great day at the plate as he had four hits in five at-bats while scoring one run for the Panthers. Seniors Byron Mackay and Brent Cantrell scored three runs and two runs respectively. Sophomore Dalton LeBleu also drove in two RBIs for the Panthers with his two hits in four at-bats.
The Panthers were down to their last out of the game with the bases empty as they found a way to score three runs to tie the game at nine runs and force the game into extra innings. Luis Quintana was able to draw a two out walk and then senior Brent Cantrell singled to right field to put the Panthers with runners on first and second base and two outs. Freshman Marcos Quintana then slugged a two-run double into left-center field to score both Quintana and Cantrell. Freshman Tristan Scott entered the game as a pinch-runner for Quintana and Scott was able to score when Dalton LeBleu singled up the middle and it scored Scott to tie the game up. Unfortunately, in the bottom of the eighth inning the Huskies scored one run with two outs and a win in walk-off fashion.
The loss dropped the Panthers overall record to 5-5 overall and 0-0 in Western Slope League play. The Panthers will open their Western Slope Conference schedule when they travel to take on the Cedaredge Bruins on Saturday, April 23.
Special to the Herald Times
