McCurdy’s second game against Questa went to extra innings, and now it is unclear if they will finish the game.
Tied 6-6 through seven innings, there was not enough daylight left to complete the game with no lights at McCurdy’s field.
“We should’ve done better,” said junior Carlos Garcia. “We should’ve gotten on them earlier in the game … We thought we had them beat before the game even started.”
The Bobcats (13-7, 7-0 in district) won the first game of the doubleheader 19-7 against the Wildcats (4-12, 2-5) at home on Thursday, extending their lead in the district. But the second game proved to be much tougher.
“This is what happens when you start slow,” said McCurdy coach Ian Maestas. “We started slow in this game, let them hang around. These are the results of those kinds of games.”
In the second game, the Bobcats started slow on offense after giving up three runs in the first inning. They got one run manufactured by Garcia in the first inning, then went down quickly in the second and third.
Maestas owned up to a mistake costing the Bobcats a run: Thomas Bolton led off the third inning with a triple into the gap, and Maestas hesitated then waved him home. Bolton was caught between the bases, and was ultimately thrown out at home rather than stand safely on third. That cost McCurdy momentum, and the next two batters popped out and struck out to end the inning.
Big bats came in the fourth with a triple by Jeremaya Roybal and an inside-the-park home run by Lucas Martinez, but the next three batters went down.
Cruz Martinez led off the fifth with a triple, and Roybal hit a two-run inside-the-park home run to give McCurdy a 6-5 lead.
The Bobcats missed a chance to extend the lead in the sixth with a strikeout with two runners on.
In the top of the seventh, with the sun quickly setting, McCurdy took the mound looking to put the game away. But Questa’s Noah Rael hit the ball over the center fielder, and circled the bases as the ball bounced around McCurdy’s substantial outfield, scoring himself the tying run. In the bottom of the inning, McCurdy’s 2-3-4 hitters went down 1-2-3 with a groundout, popout and groundout.
Then, in the top of the eighth, with a 1-2 count, one out, and no runners on base, home plate umpire Ron DeVargas made the decision that it was too dark, and players were having trouble seeing the ball. He suspended the game, and turned it over to district and school officials to determine what will happen to the district game going forward.
McCurdy remains undefeated in district, something that has been common in recent years. Dating back to 2019, they are 48-1 in district play.
That domination comes with an extra target. When they play Mora, Peñasco or Questa, they know that the Rangers, Panthers or Wildcats will bring their all. Questa seemed especially hungry for a win, having not beaten McCurdy since 2015.
“We see the best of everybody, every time we play them,” Maestas said. “We do come in with a goal … to send the message that we are in charge of the district.”
The first game was completely different for McCurdy, a dominant win, but also perhaps made them overconfident.
The Bobcats scored 10 runs in the first inning. Ten of the first 11 batters reached base and scored. Garcia had both an RBI triple and an RBI single in the inning.
After giving up five runs in a long second inning, the Bobcats came back for six more in the second.
Cruz Martinez took over on the mound and finished the game strong, striking out seven and giving up two runs in three innings of work. The Bobcats finished the game after 4.5 innings with a mercy rule.
Questa coach Ricardo Leon praised his “first basewoman” Aliyah Santistevan, a female player with one of the best statistical outputs on the team, with a .585 on-base percentage, and she also has pitched this year. While Questa does not have a softball team, Santistevan plays with the boys. Leon said that he is trying to get Santistevan a potential softball scholarship.
McCurdy will face a challenge next week in top-ranked Santa Rosa (19-2). The Bobcats will look to shore up their seeding ahead of the state tournament, and prove that they can play with anyone.