Baseball Preview: Durango Demons vs. Montezuma-Cortez Panthers
The Durango Demons will be staying on the road on Tuesday to face off against the Montezuma-Cortez Panthers at 4:30 p.m. Durango is strutting in with some hitting muscle as they've averaged 6.9 runs per game this season.
On Saturday, Durango came up short against Grand Junction Central and fell 7-4.
Ian Szura made the most of his time at bat despite the final result and went 3-for-4 with three doubles. The team also got some help courtesy of Dawson Mclnnes, who scored a run and stole a base while going 1-for-3.
Even though they lost, Durango hit smart and finished the game with only one strikeout. They easily outclassed their opponents in that department as Grand Junction Central struck out nine times.
Meanwhile, Montezuma-Cortez waltzed into their game on Saturday with five straight wins... but they left with six. They came out on top against the Wolverines by a score of 9-6.
Jaris McDonald was a major factor no matter where he played. He tossed an inning while giving up no earned runs or hits. McDonald has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than two walks in three consecutive pitching appearances. McDonald was also solid in the batter's box, scoring two runs while going 2-for-4.
In other pitching news, Bobby Likes looked comfortable as he tossed three innings while giving up no earned runs off one hit. He has been consistent recently: he hasn't given up more than one earned run in three consecutive pitching appearances.
Back at the plate, the team relied heavily on Darren Daves, who went 3-for-4 with a home run, two triples, and three runs. He has been hot recently, having posted at least one stolen base the last four times he's played. Another player making a difference was Parker Conrad, who went 2-for-4 with four RBI, two runs, and a triple.
Durango has been struggling recently as they've lost 12 of their last 15 matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 8-14 record this season. As for Montezuma-Cortez, they pushed their record up to 14-8 with that victory, which was their fifth straight on the road.
The pitchers for both teams better look sharp on Tuesday as neither team is afraid to steal. Durango has been swiping bases left and right this season, having averaged 3.2 stolen bases per game. However, it's not like Montezuma-Cortez struggles in that department as they've been averaging 3.7. The only question left is which team can snag more.
Durango came up short against Montezuma-Cortez in their previous meeting back in March of 2023, falling 7-3. Thankfully for Durango, Jake Blackmer (who struck out six batters over five innings while giving up just one earned (and one unearned) run off three hits) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
