Baseball season is under way at Montezuma-Cortez High School and the Panthers are off to a 2-2 start.

Cortez finished third in the St. Pius X Tournament in Albuquerque after winning two of three games. They very well could have been 3-1 but they lost a heartbreaking decision in Moab, Utah, to Grand County Tuesday afternoon, March 14.

"I don’t think we played real good baseball (at the tourney) compared to the high standards we’ve set this year," MCHS coach Jeff Bollinger said. "We just made too many mistakes and we weren’t hitting the ball well. I was pleased with our hitting during the tournament but we made too many errors."

The Panthers opened up the 2000 season by playing Albuquerque Sandia in the first round of the tournament. Cortez won 16-11.

Cortez pushed five runs over the plate in the bottom of the first inning. A double by Josh Cornett, and a triple by Kevin Wayman highlighted the inning. Sandia scored twice in the frame.

The Panthers scored six times in the third. Evan Frost and Josh Knapp cracked doubles. Cortez led 11-2. The Matadors responded with four runs in the second, most of those coming off errors.

Cortez scored a run in the third and added four more in the fourth. Sandia added a run in the fourth and four in the fifth, again most of those because of mistakes.

Wayman went three-for-three on the day while collecting three runs batted in. Frost knocked in three runs and Tony McComb knocked a couple more.

Shane Chadwick was credited with the win on the mound after coming in relief.

The Panthers faced their host, the Sartans in the semifinals. St. Pius X won 11-7.

After trailing 2-0 after an inning, Cortez scored three times thanks to a three-run homer by Frost. But the Sartans came back with four runs in the bottom of the second to take a 6-3 lead. St. Pius X pushed four times in the fourth for a commanding 10-3 advantage.

MCHS managed to score a run in the fifth but the Albuquerque school responded with a run. Scored made the game close with four runs in the sixth.

Frost and Randon Cornett both hit doubles for the Panthers.

Ryan Loyd was charged with the loss. He struck out eight and gave up only one walk.

MCHS faced Socorro, N.M., for third-fourth place and won 4-2.

The Panthers scored in the first inning when Matt Ruggles singled and Bryce Tanner later knocked him across the plate. Socorro scored twice in the sixth and the Panthers cored three runs in the sixth. Josh Cornett cracked a two-run homer in the frame.

McCombs ripped a pair of doubles and Frost slapped two singles.

Josh Cornett picked up the win on the mound, fanning 12 batters in going the distance.

"Our defense for the tournament was just here and there. We struggled with a throw. We had trouble getting the ball out of the glove, and letting balls roll through our legs. But some of that is going to come around we should be a better defensive team.

"The kids are excited that we placed third. We are making progress," Bollinger added.

The Panthers then traveled to play Grand County and lost 14-13.

"We started off hitting the ball hard," he explained. "We just did a great job hitting during the first few innings. We had six or seven in the first two innings and we finished with 15 for the game."

McComb caught a fast ball with the bases loaded and sent the ball sailing over the fence for a grand slam. The Panthers were up 7-0. The Red Devils came back and scored three runs in the bottom of the first.

Cortez scored twice in the top of the second. Suddenly, the Panthers began making fielding mistakes which cost them dearly in the bottom of the second. The Devils scored eight times to take an 11-9 lead.

"We needed just one guy to step up and make the play. We had errors all the around the infield. We did not get to the ball when we needed to," Bollinger said.

The Panthers rallied and tied the game at 11-all with two in the third.

Grand County scored a run in the fourth while Cortez added a run in the sixth. The score was tied 13-all after seven regulation innings. The eighth stayed scoreless. The Panthers went down 1-2-3 in the ninth. A leadoff double, a sacrifice bunt, two walks and a single which ended it.

McComb finished the game with four RBI. Frost went three-for-five while Chadwick, Randon Cornett, Matt Ruggles, Tanner, and Josh Cornett all went two-for-five. Loyd started the game on the hill but the defense let him down, Caleb Coate came in and Josh Cornett finished up and was tagged with the loss.