It was one of the better varsity baseball seasons for Montezuma-Cortez High School in years. They finished 8-12 overall.

They lost 5-4 to Montrose on May 6 in the first round of the District 8 Tournament played at Sam Suplizio Field in Grand Junction.

"We played pretty decent," MCHS head coach Jeff Bollinger said. "We didn’t play a great game but we played OK."

Caleb Coate started on the mound and was relieved by Ryan Loyd. Josh Cornett came in and shut down Montrose. However, the damage had already been done.

The Indians scored first in the top of the first inning. The Panthers came back with a run in the bottom of the frame. Montrose scored three runs in the third while the Panthers pushed a run over in the bottom of the inning. Montrose scored once the eventual winning run in the top of the fourth. Cortez rallied with two runs in the bottom of the inning but it wasn’t enough. Neither team scored the rest of the game.

"We just didn’t score enough runs," Bollinger added. "We got eight hits but we didn’t string many together. We left a lot of runners (six) in scoring position."

Bryce Tanner rapped a single and a double and score twice. Matt Betts drilled a double for the Panthers.

How does Bollinger look back on the season?

"We had a year. We beat two teams Cortez had not beaten in years. We beat Durango and Grand Junction High in the same week. This program was definitely on the move. We had a very good year. I told the kids this was the most fun season I’ve ever had. Our practices were long and hard but we tried to keep it fun," he remarked.

Under Bollingers’ tutelage, the team set six school records. They finished with 174 hits, and had a team batting average of .330. Tanner stole 20 bases and scored 23 runs. Matt Ruggles finished with 26 hits. Cornett had an earned run average of 1.86.

Bollinger will not be returning to MCHS for his third season. He will leave with an 11-24 record for the past two years as head coach.

"I have had a great time coaching the kids here in Cortez. I have invested my heart and soul into this program and I am very disappointed I will not be able to see things through for the remaining players.

"I felt we have made great strides together to help build one of the most successful baseball programs in MCHS history. I am not, however, going to miss the endless phone calls and complaints from parents. I wish the next coach success but he will have to endure through some difficult parents who know how to whine to administrators but know very little about kids and nothing about baseball.

"I have heard from many people that what MCHS baseball needs is somebody who is willing to stick with it and build a program. I was willing to stick with it. I have invested time and money to build a summer program. I was planning on building this program to a high level as well as staying active in the community of Cortez. It is not my decision to leave. It is the decision of others. It has to do with teaching assignments, although I am qualified to teach four subjects. MCHS will not find me an assignment like it is doing for the new head football coach.

"These kids deserve more support from their school and more concern about their welfare. Next year’s seniors, like seniors for the last four years will have their third head coach. Does that sound like their school cares about them? I leave knowing that I have been a positive influence to many young men and hope the lessons they have learned from me will help them in life. I will truly miss being a part of their lives. I would like to thank my assistant coaches, Athletic Director Brad Jones, and the positive parents for the support I have received from them."

The Warriors, who've approached the entire season in a businesslike manner, took care of business against Montrose, scoring four runs on the bottom of the sixth to defeat the Indians 11-1.