Canyon’s Ben Black celebrates after delivering a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh to beat Hereford, 4-3, in a District 4-4A matchup at Conner Park in Canyon on Tuesday afternoon. [Tom Carver/ For Press Pass Sports]
Ben Black came up clutch for Canyon in the bottom of the seventh delivering a single on the first pitch he saw that soared the Eagles to a 4-3 walk-off win against Hereford in a District 4-4A showdown at Conner Park on Tuesday.
The victory keeps Canyon perfect in district at 6-0, and 20-3 overall. Hereford falls to 7-11, 3-3.
It was a slow start offensively for both teams as both pitchers were dealing on the mound. Ryan McAffery got the nod for Canyon, and was lights out on the mound. The Midland College signee threa six innings holding the Whitefaces to one earned run, scattering three hits, racking up eight strikeouts.
On the opposing side, Carlos Duran of Hereford kept his team in it allowing only three runs to come across on five hits, and striking out six.
Trailing 3-1, the Whitefaces took full advantage of fielding errors by the Eagles knotting the game, 3-3, heading into the bottom half of the sixth.
McAffery was pulled after walking the leadoff batter in the top of the seventh, being replaced by Jace Owen. Even with the leadoff batter on, Owen was able to force a ground out and strike out the next two batters to get out of the inning unscathed.
In the bottom half of the seventh, the Eagles were able to get their first two batters on base before the eventual game-winning single by Ben Black.
Canyon 4, Hereford 3
Hereford 010 002 0 — 3 1 3
Canyon 011 100 1 — 4 6 2
Duran, (7) Gonzales, and Nevarez
McAffery, (7) Owen, and Hefner. W— Owen. L— Duran. Records: Hereford 7-11, 3-3. Canyon 20-3, 6-0.
Pampa gets past Dumas with hot bats
The Pampa Harvesters found runs in bunches as they ran away with an 11-4 win against Dumas on the road Tuesday.
Pampa’s Cayson Steward and Rhett Hill combined for five hits, five RBIs, and four runs scored. Hill added on to the scoring totals with his two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth that put the game out of reach for the Demons.
Dumas’ offense was highlighted by Raul Bustamante’s two-run home run in the top of the third.
On the mound, Bustamante was unable to control the Harvester offense giving up five runs on six hits in his four innings of work.
For the Harvesters, Armando Miranda’s 6 1/3 innings of work was more than enough for his team. Miranda gave up three runs on seven hits, striking out three. Hunter Nichols came in as relief in the seventh and picked up the final two outs for Pampa.
Pampa 11, Dumas 4.
Pampa 004 043 0 — 11 11 2
Dumas 002 000 2 — 4 7 2
Miranda, (7) Nichols, and Stout Bustamante, (5) Boelter, and Cota. W— Miranda. L— Bustamante. 2B— Pampa: Anguiano. Dumas: Boelter. HR— Pampa: Hill. Dumas: Bustamante. Records: Pampa 11-8, 3-3. Dumas 11-10, 4-2.
Perryton downs Borger
The Perryton Rangers defeated Borger 7-2 in a District 4-4A contest in Perryton on Tuesday. The Rangers improve to 9-11 overall and 2-4 in league play. The Bulldogs fall to 2-19, 0-6.
Game stats weren’t provided to Press Pass Sports.
District 3-5A
Randall, Tascosa move into tie for second
The Randall Raiders made a big statement on the road in District 3-5A on Tuesday, and created a logjam for the final three playoff berths in the district.
Randall fell behind Plainview early but closed out the game with six unanswered runs to return home with a 6-2 victory. The win created a three-way tie for second place in the district.
Plainview took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second, but got nothing else after that off Randall starter Payton Bush, who went six innings for the win. Bush struck out seven and gave up only four hits.
The Raiders (13-13-1, 6-4 in district) tied it 2-2 in the top of the fourth on an error and a sacrifice fly by Alexys Camacho. They took the lead for good at 3-2 on M.J. Cepeda’s RBI triple.
Hunter Phillips drove in a run on a triple in the fifth and scored on Mason Ladd’s single. Phillips, Camacho and Taylor McDaniel had two hits each for Randall and Ladd drove in two runs.
Plainview fell into a tie for second at 13-12-1 and 6-4. The two teams meet again Friday at Randall, and the winner will make the playoffs if Amarillo High beats Caprock.
Randall 6, Plainview 2
Randall 000 321 0 – 6 10 1
Plainview 020 000 0 – 2 5 2
Payton Bush, Dylan Cheyne (7) and Mason Ladd. Dominguez, Damian Jimenez (6) and Alcala. W – Bush. L – Dominguez. 2B – Randall: Hayden Smith. 3B – Randall: M.J. Cepeda, Hunter Phillips. Records: Randall 13-13-1, 6-4. Plainview 13-12-1, 6-4.
AHS reaches postseason by routing Caprock
Amarillo High broke open a close game by scoring nine runs in the last two innings to invoke the 10-run mercy rule and beat Caprock 11-1 at Sandie Field in five innings to maintain a three-game lead atop the district and clinch a playoff berth.
The Sandies (18-6, 9-1) led only 2-1 going into the bottom of the fourth. They got back-to-back triples with two outs, as Davien Berry’s drove in two runs and he scored on one by Tristan Curless to make it 6-1.
In the fifth, Amarillo High scored four runs before the Longhorns (3-19, 2-8) could record an out, and that was Berry’s sacrifice fly to make it 10-1. Curless ended the game with an RBI double.
Roger King drove in Caprock’s only run in the fourth on a single to score Isayah Gonzales.
Amarillo High 11, Caprock 1
Caprock 000 10 – 1 2 2
Amarillo High 002 45 – 11 12 0
Lance Meissenburg, Roger King (4), Jasiel Acosta (5) and Aldo Ostos. Will Franklin, Ryan Proffer (4) and Braize Mitchell. W- Franklin. L – Meissenburg. 2B – AHS: Tristan Curless, Jett Johnston. 3B – AHS: Davien Berry, Curless. Records: Caprock 3-19, 2-8. Amarillo High 18-6, 9-1.
Tascosa crushes Palo Duro
In the other AISD matchup, the run rule was also attained, as Tascosa scored seven in the second cruised from there, rolling to a 13-0 five-inning victory at Palo Duro to move the Rebels into a three-way tie for second with Randall and Plainview.
After a scoreless first inning, the Rebels (12-11, 6-4) sent the first eight batters to the plate in the second. Tai Pheituangsy had a two-run single and Josh Splawn capped the hit parade with a two-run home run to make it 6-0.
Pheituangsy had a two-run triple in the third as Tascosa went up 11-0. The Rebels pounded out 17 hits, which was more than enough to support Seth Young, who gave up three hits in five innings.
Palo Duro fell to 5-18-1 and 1-9.
Tascosa 13, Palo Duro 0
Tascosa 074 02 – 13 17 0
Palo Duro 000 00 – 0 3 1
Note: Palo Duro names unavailable. Seth Young and Koben Yarbrough. W – Young. 2B – Tascosa: Erik Arce, Cade Turner. 3B – Tascosa: Logan Nance 2, Tai Pheituangsy. HR – Tascosa: Josh Splawn. Records: Tascosa 12-11, 6-4. Palo Duro 5-18-1, 1-9.
District 3-5A compiled by — Lee Passmore
District 1-3A
Bushland bats too much for Tulia
Bushland went on the road to Tulia on Tuesday and got off the bus with hot bats, taking out the Hornets 14-4 in five innings.
The Hornets did something that few teams have been capable of against Bushland this season, keeping the game reasonably close for more than an inning. The Hornets trailed 3-1 as they took to the third, but then, as they often do, the Bushland bats started to rattle.
Hays McDonald put a damper in things for the Hornets as hit a grand slam in the top of the third. However, the Hornets responded with three runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning.
Bushland fired back once more in the fifth, and this time it would be too much for the Hornets to overcome. Bushland took advantage of free bases with three walks in the inning. The Falcons would score on a 2 RBI single by Westin Forbes, and a Ryan Samford 2 RBI double to extend their lead to 14-4.
Bushland (17-0, 5-0) looks to be in full control of this district, while Tulia (9-10, 1-4.) looks to find some footing in the 1-3A district race.
Bushland 14, Tulia 4
Bushland 214 16x x — 14 11 1
Tulia 103 00x x — 4 10 3
Bass, (3) Nebhut and McDonald. Molina, (5) Culwell and Subealdea. W— Nebhut L— Molina. 2B— Bushland:Junell, Nebhut, Samford. Tulia: Villa. HR— Bushland: Hays McDonald. Records: Bushland 17-0, 5-0. Tulia 9-10, 1-4.
Dimmitt blasts Friona
The Bobcats continued to drive in runs this season as they took a 19-1 win over Friona on the road Tuesday afternoon.
Trey Aguero was on fire at the plate, picking up four hits for Dimmitt. The catcher finished with a double and three singles, collecting three RBIs along the way. Dimmitt took full advantage of a struggling Friona pitching staff that walked the Bobcats 11 times.
Victor Flores took the bump for Dimmitt and shined. In four innings of work, Flores held Friona to only three hits, walking two batters and striking out six.
Dimmitt 19, Friona 1
Dimmitt 109 18x x — 19 9 3
Friona 000 10x x — 1 4 3
Flores, (5) Carpio, and Aguero. Chavira, (5) Ledezma, and Grimsley. W— Flores. L— Chavira. 2B— Dimmitt: Aguero, J. Carpio, Melendez. Friona: Chavira, Hueste. Records: Dimmitt 16-4, 4-1. Friona 1-11, 0-5.
River Road cruises past Dalhart
River Road’s centerfielder Luis Delgado had himself a day at the plate to help his team bully their way past Dalhart 11-1 on the road Monday.
Delgado fueled an already hot offense, driving in four runs on the day. Those runs came across on a bases-clearing double in the top of the third and a RBI triple in the sixth. Delgado was only one of six River Road batters to have multiple hits on the game. Lance Welps and Drake Kilman both finished with three knocks a piece.
Welps went the full seven innings on the mound, allowing only one run on two hits and striking out 11 Wolves in the game.
River Road (8-11, 3-2) now has back to back wins as they try to battle back into a top spot in the district race. Dalhart (8-10, 2-3) still has work to be done to compete for a playoff spot.
River Road 11, Dalhart 1
River Road 006 012 2 — 11 16 2
Dalhart 001 000 0 — 1 2 0
Welps and Clark. Chaparro, (6) Gerald, and Griggs. W— Welps. L— Chapparo. 2B— RR: Upchurch 2, Welps, Delgado. 3B— RR: Delgado. Records: River Road 8-11, 3-2. Dalhart 8-10, 2-3.