Despite a season-ending loss, McCurdy’s baseball players were still in high spirits.
There were no tears in their postgame huddle. Even the seniors were all smiles.
“We tried our hardest,” senior Lucas Martinez said with a smile and a shrug. “That’s all you can say. They’re a better team.”
The No. 5 seed Bobcats lost 14-3 to No. 4 Menaul / Oak Grove in the state quarterfinal on Thursday in Albuquerque at the Jennifer Riordan Complex.
“We just didn’t perform to our level today,” said McCurdy coach Ian Maestas.
Oak Grove senior Noah Rush took a breaking ball from Thomas Bolton and launched a two-run home run over the left-field fence in the bottom of the fifth for a walk-off mercy-rule win.
“It happens,” Martinez said.
It marks the fourth-straight year that McCurdy has made the state quarterfinals and lost. (The 2020 season was canceled, but they had the same result in 2019 as well). The previous three times had all been against Rehoboth Christian.
“I wish I had the answer,” said Maestas. “We’re trying to figure it out.”
McCurdy had their first-inning rally slowed by a caught stealing, and the Owls went up 3-0 in the bottom of the first.
The Bobcats woke up their bats in the third, with four base hits including a double by Carlos Garcia that brought in a run (and another scored on a throwing error on the play). McCurdy tied the game with three runs, but their inning ended with a strikeout-caught stealing double play.
Menaul / Oak Grove responded in the bottom of the inning by capitalizing on three McCurdy errors (they committed five total), one of which let two runners score on a grounder to first, and they scored six runs total. They scored three more in the fourth, and two in the fifth to win via mercy rule.
“It might be the big stage jitters,” Masetas said. “Could’ve just not been our day.”
Starting pitcher Carlos Garcia led McCurdy with two hits in the game and one RBI. He nearly added to the lead in the fifth inning with a deep flyout to straightaway center field (390 feet labeled to the fence).
“I think he needs to do a few more pushups, and that one would be gone too,” Maestas said.
Bolton also had two hits and a walk. Bolton has a workout next week at Luna Community College to potentially play baseball at the next level.
The loss marked the end of the first year of Ian Maestas’ tenure as head coach. He took over after longtime coach Roberto DeVargas retired at the end of the 2023 season.
Throughout his first year, winning 18 games, McCurdy had fun on the field, and even their coach dyed his hair with the team for the state tournament.
“I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” Martinez said.
“Most of our wins came just because we were having fun,” said senior Jacob Samaniego.
The seniors see a bright future in the younger players, and a strong program that has been established.
“I look forward to next year, already,” Maestas said. “I expect us to be right here again next year.”
The loss does, at least, allow for McCurdy’s seniors to attend their graduation. The state final is scheduled for Saturday morning in Albuquerque, at the same time as the school’s graduation in Española. Maestas said he planned to give them their diploma on the field.
“I was going to flip a coin,” Martinez said on whether he would go.
“Better than a two-hour ceremony,” Bolton said.