|
Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Monday, March 1, 1999
Eagles use HRs to score opening sweep
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Mar. 1 -- No windshield was safe if it was left
sitting behind the outfield fence Friday night, during the
Pecos Eagles' season-opening doubleheader against the
Monahans Loboes.
The teams combined for seven home runs, five by Pecos and
three of those by leadoff hitter Oscar Luna, who homered in
his first at-bat in the opener and then twice more in the
nightcap, as the Eagles rallied from early 2-0 deficits both
times to sweep the Loboes by matching 11-6 final scores.
Joshua Casillas survived some fielding problems by his
defense to win Game 1, while Oscar Rodriguez settled down
after allowing Joel Najar's moon shot at the start of Game 2
to earn his first varsity win, striking out 11 Monahans
batters along the way.
"I was real happy with the way we hit the ball," said
Eagles' coach Bubba Williams. "I like the way we came out
right of the bat and Oscar hit that leadoff home run. He
hits that and -- boom -- all the kids thought they could hit.
"The leadoff hitter sets the stage for all the other kids.
When Oscar comes up and starts hitting like that, it gets
all the other kids going."
Luna's homer in the opener off starter Roy Porras came after
Monahans got a pair of unearned runs in their first at bat,
when Todd Passmore's bases-loaded grounder when through
third baseman Ricky Herrera's legs with two out. Mark Abila
following the homer by doubling down the line in left and
came around on ground outs by Casillas and John Gutierrez.
Herrera got Pecos' six-run second inning going with another
double down the left field line, this after a leadoff walk
to Kevin Bates. One out later Louis Valencia singles both
runners home and he would score on Abila's two-out single to
right-center. Casillas followed with another single before
Gutierrez cracked Pecos' second homer of the game, a
three-run shot to center field.
Monahans got a run back in the third, on doubles by Benny
Rodriguez and Brady Hawkins, before the Eagles scored twice
more in the fourth, off a Casillas double, a walk to
Gutierrez and RBI singles by Rodriguez and Bates. However,
they did lose Gutierrez for the rest of the day when he
sprained an ankle trying to stop rounding third base.
Orlando Lara replaced him and scored on Bates' single.
Casillas would allow 10 hits in the game, but stranded 12
Monahans runners to keep out of trouble most of the way. He
did walk home a run in the fifth and saw Porras double home
a run in the sixth, before the Eagles gave fans a flashback
on 1997 in the seventh inning, when they blew a six-run lead
and lost to the Loboes.
Two errors by Luis Salgado at shortstop, a double off Luna's
glove in center and a bloop single behind third base cut the
lead to 11-6 and loaded the bases for Najar, but Casillas
got him to ground out to Herrera to end the game.
Najar's next at bat went a little better for Monahans, as he
put one over the light towers in left field after a one-out
walk in Game 2, giving the Loboes a 2-0 lead. But once
again, the Eagles responded right away, getting three runs
in their half of the first.
They were helped by catcher Gabe Ontiveros' problems
throwing the ball back to Najar on the mound. He tossed it
over the pitcher's head after Luna walked and Bates doubled,
allowing Luna to score. Casillas then doubled home Bates and
scored on Jeffrey Martinez' double, for a 3-2 lead.
Luna's second home run, a line drive to left-center, made it
4-2 in the second inning before Monahans scored an unearned
run, after Dominic Sanchez reached second base on a passed
ball third strike, moved up to third on a wild pitch and
scored when Abila's throw went into left field.
The wind picked up again in the fourth and Luna took
advantage, getting a fly ball up into the breeze and over
the fence after singles by Sergio Zembrano and Lara. Bates
then reached on a bad throw by third baseman Josue Carrasco
and it cost the Loboes when Abila lined his first homer of
the season over the fence in center field.
The Loboes would get another run on a passed ball third
strike in their next at bat, and Junior Cordova would homer
in the sixth, after Luna dropped Josh Speed's fly ball to
center. But by then Pecos had added their final runs, off
singles by Martinez, Richard Rodriguez and Sergio Zembrano
and a double steal of second and home by Zembrano and
Rodriguez.
Unlike the first game, this time the Loboes went quietly in
the seventh, as Rodriguez wound up allowing just five hits
on the night.
"Chacho (Rodriguez) has got his breaking pitch and he's got
a lot of stuff on the ball. The only thing is he's got to
keep his head up," said Williams, who had a talk with
Rodriguez in the first inning. "When they hit one on him or
when he walks someone, he just can't get down."
The sweep reverses last year's results, when Monahans beat
Pecos in both meetings. The teams could meet again this
Saturday, in the Monahans Sandhills Tournament, depending on
how both teams fare in their opening games. Pecos begins
play on Thursday with a 3 p.m. game against Alpine. The
Eagles defeated Fort Stockton last year to win the Sandhills
title.
First Game
MONAHANS PECOS
ab r h bi ab r h bi
Juarez 2b 0 0 0 0 Luna cf 3 1 1 1
Sanchez dh 5 1 2 1 Abila c 4 2 3 1
B.Rdrgz lf 4 1 1 0 R.Rdrgz cr 0 0 0 0
Najar 3b 3 2 2 0 Casillas p 4 0 2 0
Prrs p-1b 3 0 2 1 Garcia cr 0 2 0 0
Cordova cr 0 1 0 0 Gtrrz 1b 2 1 1 4
Hwkns ss-p 3 0 1 1 Lara pr 0 1 0 0
Passmore rf 3 1 0 0 Zmbrno lf 0 0 0 0
Speed 1b 2 0 1 0 R.Rdz lf-rf 1 0 0 0
Cordova ss 1 0 0 1 O.Rdz lf-1b 3 0 2 1
Swarb c 4 0 0 0 Bates rf-lf 2 1 2 1
Dutcher cf 4 0 1 0 Herrera 3b 3 1 1 0
Salgado ss 2 1 0 0
Valencia 2b 2 1 2 2
Totals 32 6 10 4 Totals 26 11 14 10
Monahans 2 0 1 0 1 1 1 -- 6
Pecos 2 6 0 2 1 0 x --11
E -- Herrera, Dutcher, Cordova, Salgado 2. LOB -- Monahans
12, Pecos 4. 2B -- D. Rodriguez, Porras, Hawkins, Speed,
Abila, Casillas, Herrera. HR -- Luna (1), Gutierrez. SB --
Garcia, Valencia, Salgado CS -- O. Rodriguez 2, Luna, Bates.
IP H R ER BB KO
Monahans
Porras L 0-1 3 1-3 10 10 10 2 3
Hawkins 2 2-3 4 1 1 2 1
Pecos
Casillas W 1-0 7 10 6 3 5 7
HBP -- Salgado, O. Rodriguez by Hawkins, D. Rodriguez by
Casillas.
WP -- Porras, Casillas.
PB -- Swarb.
T -- 2:41
Second Game
MONAHANS PECOS
ab r h bi ab r h bi
Sanchez 2b 4 1 0 0 Luna cf 2 3 2 4
B.Rdrgz lf 3 2 1 0 Batez rf 3 2 1 0
Njr p-1b 3 1 1 2 Abila c 4 1 1 2
Porras 1b 3 0 2 0 Casillas 1b 4 1 1 1
Hawkins ss 4 0 0 0 Mrtnez 3b 3 1 2 1
Passmore rf 1 0 0 0 R.Rdgz ss 4 1 1 0
Alvarez rf 2 0 0 0 Lara 2b 2 1 1 0
Carrasco 3b 0 0 0 0 Zembrno lf 3 1 2 1
Speed dh-p 3 1 0 0 O.Rdrgz p 1 0 0 0
Cordova cf 3 1 1 2 Garcia dh 2 0 0 0
Ontvros c 1 0 0 0
Swarb c 2 0 0 0
Totals 29 6 5 4 Totals 28 11 11 9
Monahans 3 0 0 0 1 2 0 -- 6
Pecos 3 1 0 5 2 0 x --11
E -- Ontiveros, Abila, Carrasco 2, R. Rodriguez, Luna. DP --
Monahans 1. LOB -- Monahans 5, Pecos 4. 2B -- Bates,
Casillas, Martinez, HR -- Luna 2 (3), Abila (1). S -- Lara.
SB -- Bates, Zambrano, R. Rodriguez.
IP H R ER BB KO
Monahans
Najar L 0-1 3 2-3 8 9 7 1 5
Speed 2 1-3 3 2 2 2 0
Pecos
O. Rodriguez W 1-0 7 5 6 3 3 11
HBP -- Martinez by Speed.
WP -- O. Rodriguez 2, Najar.
PB -- Abila 3.
T -- 2:15
Pecos teams place fifth at Comanche
PECOS, Mar. 1 -- There were medals, though no golds for the
first time in several years, for the Pecos Eagle track teams
on Friday and Saturday, at the season-opening Comanche
Relays.
Pecos' boys scored 52 points and finished fifth, while the
Eagle girls placed fifth in their division with 55 points.
The girls got third place finishes from both their 400 and
1600 meter relay teams, and got a third from Julie Lujan in
the shot put on Friday, while the boys picked up a second in
the 400 meter relay and a third in the 1600, along with
thirds from Oscar Medrano in the 3200 meters on Friday and
from Daniel Terrazas in the 400 meter dash and Orlando Matta
in the 800 meter run on Saturday.
"Right now we still don't have all our girls," said coach
Lily Talamantez. "It looks promising, but we're still not in
track shape. But overall, I thought we did O.K."
Talamantez said Lujan also picked up a fourth place in the
discus, while Liz Parent was fifth in the 800 and sixth in
the 1600, Maricela Arenivas was sixth in the long jump, and
freshman Kathy Maldonado placed in the 400 meter dash.
"Liz wasn't feeling good all day, although she said she felt
better after she ran (the 1600)," Talamantez said.
In the 1600 relay, the girls had to rally from way behind to
get their medal, while the boys saw Crane and San Angelo
Lake View catch them in the final lap. Still, coach Vance
Washington said he was happy with the relay results and with
the overall effort.
"I thought we competed very well considering we only brought
12 kids to the meet," he said. "I thought we showed a lot of
guts on the relay. We were first after the first three laps,
but just couldn't hold on.
"We still need a lot of work, and there are some things we
haven't worked on, and I think we'll get a lot better, field
event-wise," Washington said. "At least we have something to
work with."
"We just got the pole vault pit done and we're going to get
the long jump pit next and then we'll start working on the
field events," Washington said.
San Angelo Lake View easily won both division titles, taking
the boys' crown by a 194-99 margin over Crane and winning
the girls title with 198 points to 146 for Monahans.
Both coaches were hoping to have a few more people available
this week, when the Eagles go to Kermit Friday afternoon for
the Permian Basin Relays.
Navarette earns district MVP honor
PECOS, Mar. 1 -- It was almost all or nothing for the Pecos
Eagles in voting for the All-District 2-4A boys basketball
team.
The six coaches named just one Pecos player to the first
team all-district squad and none received honorable mention,
but senior Fernando Navarette did enough to earn most
valuable player honors for the 1998-99 season.
Pecos' other player to earn honors was senior guard Hector
Garcia, who was voted to the all-defensive team by the 2-4A
coaches, while two other seniors, Mark Marquez and Orlando
Matta, were named to the academic all-district team, coach
Mike Sadler said.
Although it was a low-scoring year for Pecos, in which they
finished district wit a 2-8 mark, Navarette led the Eagles
at just over 16 points per game, and twice in district
finished with over 20 points in games where the Eagles
failed to break the 40 point barrier. The senior was also
the team's top rebounder this year, after earning
all-defensive honors last year out of District 2-4A.
The all-district team was released Friday, following the
elimination of district champion Clint and runner-up San
Elizario from the Class 4A playoffs.
Navarette was one of only three seniors on the all-district
first team, which included a trio of Clint players, in
senior Dario Arroyo and juniors D.J. Check and Michael
Ortega. San Elizario's Eddie Gutierrez was the other senior
selected and was joined by junior teammate Mike Perez, while
the rest of the team was made up of Canutillo juniors Frank
Lerma and Chris Grant, El Paso Mountain View sophomore
Gilbert Garcia and Fabens junior Cesar Estrada and junior
Manny Solis.
In contrast to the underclass all-district squad, Garcia's
selection to the all-defensive team made him one of four
seniors named to that group. The others were Rene Nunez of
Canutillo, Isaac Casillas of Fabens and Ralph Esparza of
Mountain View, and they were joined by Clint junior Freddy
Ortiz and San Elizario junior David Garcia.
Honorable mention picks were sophomores Dustin Maloney of
Mountain View and James Hernandez of San Elizario, juniors
Frank Jimenez of Mountain View and Carols Nunez of Clint,
and Mountain View senior Pablo Mendoza.
Golfers place 5th, 14th at tournaments
PECOS, Mar. 1 -- The second day was a little tougher than
the first for both Pecos Eagles golf teams this past
weekend, while the results were a little better for the
girls in the final standings than they were for the boys.
Playin in their third tournament of the season, Pecos'
girls finished fifth for the third time, as they shot a
358-363-721 over two days at Fort Stockton. Pecos' boys,
meanwhile, finished 14th in Division II competition at the
Tall City Invitational at Midland, shooting a 348-350-698
for 36 holes of play.
Fort Stockton's girls won their own tournament wit a 681
score for 36 holes, seven shots ahead of Andrews. Pecos'
second day slip cost them a chance to catch Monahans and
Snyder. The Loboes shot a 340 after an opening 356, while
Snyder shot a 355 on Saturday and beat out Pecos for fourth
by three strokes. The Eagles ended up 67 strokes ahead of
sixth place Sonora.
"Two of the girls had trouble (Saturday) but we put two in
the Top 10 and I'm proud of that," coach Tina Hendrick said.
"Plus we had a sohpmore break 90 for the first time in a
tournament."
Sarah Armstrong and Alva Alvarez were seventh and eighth in
the medalist standings, with Armstrong shooting an 86-84-170
and Alavarz an 88-84-172. Salem Mitchell shot a 92-89-181,
while Cassie Foster had a 99-102-201 and Candace Roach shot
a 96-106-202.
Hendrick had planned to take both her varsity and junior
varsity squads to Fort Stockton, but wound up bringing only
two other players, Brandi Bradley, who shot a 119-107-226,
and Kattie Davis, who shot a 118-116-234. "The others were
sick or had other obigations," said Hendrick, who added she
would be shorthanded again this coming weekend at the
Midland Invitational.
Pecos' boys got matching 82-85-167 scores from seniors Lee
Lyles and Casey Love, while John Granado shot a 96-87-175,
Eric Machuca shot 96-96-192 and Jason Salcido shot a
102-93-194.
"The greens were where we had problems. They had them mowed
down real tight and we weren't used to it," coach Kim
Anderson said. "At Green Tree especially, it was like
putting on linoelum, plus they had puts from 90 to 130 feet,
and they weren't used to greens that size."
Andrews shot a 313-296-609 to win the Division II title
with a 609 score, 17 shots ahead of Frenship. Although
several El Paso are schools participated, none of Pecos' new
District 2-4A rivals were at either the Midland or Fort
Stockton tournaments this weekend.
Andrews will also be the site of the Eagles' next
tournament, this Friday and Saturday.
Sub-varsity teams score opening wins
PECOS, Mar. 1 -- The Pecos Eagles' freshmen and junior
varsity baseball teams scored victories along with the
Eagles' varsity on Friday, while the JV split their two
games on Saturday in the consolation finals of the Midland
JV Baseball Tournament.
Pecos' JV, which lost its season opener on Thursday to the
host Bulldogs, bounced back on Friday to defeat San Angelo
Central's junior varsity by a 6-4 final score. The win
advanced Pecos into the consolation semifinals on Saturday
morning, where they defeated Odessa Permian's junior varsity
squad by a 12-5 final score, before the Eagles lost in the
finals to Coahoma's varsity, by a 16-9 score.
The Eagles' ninth graders went to Monahans on Friday while
the varsity was hosting the Loboes in Pecos, and came away
with a 10-5 victory in their season opener.
Both Pecos sub-varsity baseball teams will be in action
again today, the freshmen in Kermit for a 5 p.m. while the
JV plays their home opener, at 5;30 p.m. against Monahans.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 1999 by Pecos Enterprise
|
