Last weekend, the Meeker High School softball team faced a difficult test Saturday, August 22nd, dropping both games of a road doubleheader against Montezuma-Cortez.
Meeker fell 13-1 in the opening game before dropping the second game 12-2, moving the Cowboys to 2-3 on the season after their first five games.
Despite the two losses, first-year head coach Josh Martin said the final scores did not reflect the way his team played.
“It’s really unfortunate that the scoreboard doesn’t match the playing that the girls did,” Martin said. “We were hitting the ball tremendously. We only recorded a handful of strikeouts. Unfortunately, we were just hitting them right to where they were, and they were making good routine plays.”
The Cowboys collected five hits in the opening game and finished with seven hits in the second game while hitting .350 as a team.
Senior Kayla Castillo led Meeker in the second game, going 2-for-3 with a run scored and a stolen base. Sophomore Haigen Harrison also went 2-for-3 and recorded a double.
Senior Kailynn Watson added a 1-for-2 performance with a double and two RBIs, while junior Sienna Rolen went 1-for-2 and stole two bases. Sophomore Sophia Moody also collected a hit.
The Cowboy’s offense had several opportunities throughout the second game but was unable to turn its hits into enough runs to keep pace with Montezuma-Cortez.
Martin said the Cowboys also made a few small mistakes that the team planned to address during the week.
“I think overall, the girls played really, really well, and I’m really proud of them,” Martin said. “We made a couple of small errors that we’re going to clean up this week in practice, and I think we’ll be ready for Battle Mountain this weekend.”
One area Martin wants to improve is the team’s defensive awareness, particularly on routine ground balls and positioning.
“I think just some of the routine ground balls, making sure we’re in the right position before the bat, and knowing what that position needs to be based on the opposing team’s hitting patterns and just kind of having a stronger softball IQ,” Martin said.
The Cowboys also continued to show their aggressiveness on the basepaths, collecting three stolen bases in the second game. Castillo and Rolen accounted for all three.
Martin said Montezuma-Cortez’s catcher limited Meeker’s ability to steal, but the team is working on ways to create more opportunities on the bases.
“I think really just some more aggressiveness, especially on the base running,” Martin said. “Cortez had a really great catcher with a great arm that limited our ability to steal, and so we’re really working on some speed tactics this week throughout practice to try to get some more stolen bases.”
The doubleheader came one week after Meeker opened the season 2-1 at the league tournament in Rifle.
After dropping its season opener to Eagle Valley, Meeker responded with consecutive victories over Middle Park and Aspen.
Martin said the team has continued to show improvement through its first five games, particularly in the circle and at the plate.
“I think our pitching has been phenomenal,” Martin said. “I think Kai has done a great job leading the team and being solid out there and putting balls across that can be put in play for the girls to be able to field.”
Martin also pointed to the team’s offensive approach as an area of improvement.
“Our hitting is really coming along,” Martin said. “We’ve been much more aggressive at the plate, especially these last two games. So I think as long as we keep the bats going and just start putting some more power behind those hits, I think we’ll be in a much better spot as the season continues.”
Despite going 0-2 against Montezuma-Cortez, Martin said the team maintained its energy throughout both games.
“I don’t think there was a lot of confidence that was drained from them because they played so well,” Martin said. “The girls’ effort was nonstop through both games. Even when we were down, they were still playing really hard. They didn’t put their heads down. They kept the energy up.”
The Cowboys will now turn their attention to another road test against Battle Mountain. Meeker is scheduled to play a doubleheader against the Huskies this weekend.
Battle Mountain presents an unusual challenge for the Cowboys, as the team has limited information on its opponent heading into the games.
Martin said Battle Mountain forfeited its first three games because of roster issues. The Huskies were scheduled to compete in the same Rifle tournament as Meeker but were forced to forfeit those games.
“We don’t really have a scouting report on them,” Martin said. “So I don’t fully know what to expect, and so we’re kind of just planning for anything that we can and going from there.”
With the season still in its early stages, Meeker will look to build on the positives from the Montezuma-Cortez doubleheader while cleaning up the small mistakes that contributed to the losses.
This weekend, August 28th, the Cowboys enter the Battle Mountain doubleheader with a 2-3 record and will look to get back in the win column on the road.
Senior ace pitcher Kailynn Watson delivers a pitch from the circle for the Meeker Cowboys during their doubleheader against Montezuma-Cortez Saturday. Billie Jensen PHOTO
