Despite having a young team and not having a coach for the program until only a few weeks before the start the of preseason workouts, the Montezuma-Cortez High School varsity fast pitch softball team is showing a lot of maturity. The Panthers swept a doubleheader from Delta Friday afternoon by winning 11-1 in five innings and 5-4 in extra innings at the Cortez Softball Complex. They improved to 6-2 on the season.

	STACEY POTTORFF, pitcher for the Montezuma-Cortez High School varsity fastpitch softball team, gets ready to wind up for a pitch during the first game of a doubleheader against Delta Friday afternoon at the Cortez Softball Complex. The Panthers won the game 11-1 in six innings and then took the nightcap 5-4 in eight innings.

In the opener, the Panthers exploded for five runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to crush the Delta Panthers. In that inning, Jena Thompson knocked in two runs with a double and Brook Twilley picked up a pair of runs with a triple. They also took advantage of two Delta miscues.

The Panthers got on the scoreboard in the second inning when Jentri Giesler singled and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Amanda Johnson. Giesler then advanced all the way home on a single by Linda Smart.

They added three more runs in the third. Cortez capitalized on four walks, two wild pitches, and an error. MCHS scored twice more in the fifth. Thompson singled, moved to second, zipped to third on a stolen base, and scored on a passed ball. Twilley walked, stole second, went to third on the passed ball, and came home on a grounder by Ashleigh Wilson.

Delta scored its only run in the fifth inning when Danielle Schaaf singled, advanced to second on a grounder and scored on a throwing error.

Stacey Pottorff went the distance on the mound and picked up the win. She started the game by retiring 11 of the first 12 batters she faced. Pottorff fanned five.

"We took advantage of Delta’s errors. We hit the ball well. We got our bunts down and generally the girls did a good job," MCHS head coach Charlie Rosenbaugh commented after the doubleheader was over.

In the nightcap, Delta took an early lead in the bottom of the third. Tara Varner was hit by a pitch and then went from first to third on two consecutive errors. She scored on a single by Cammie Thomas.

The Panthers scored three times in the top (visiting team for the second game) of the fourth to take a 3-1 lead. Giesler and Smart had RBI singles during the frame. Cortez added another run in the top of the fifth when Twilley singled, stole second, advanced to third on a single by Stacy Martinez, and scored on a wild pitch.

Delta tied the game at 4-4 by pushing three runs across the plate. Jen Espinoza scored three runs with a bases-loaded double.

The winning run came in the top of the eighth. Johnson singled, stole second, advanced to third on an error, and scored on a single by Smart.

Thompson started on the mound. She was relieved by Giesler who was credited with the win.

MCHS made some sensational defensive plays in the second game. Smart made a shoe-string catch and the very next play made another nice catch in right field. Wilson made a diving catch to take away a possible hit. Twilley gunned down a runner trying to steal second. Johnson also made a nice catch in left field.

"We came out flat and I don’t know why," Rosenbaugh said. "I guess the girls figured we walked away with that first game 11-1 so all we have to do is show up. But it doesn’t happen that way. This team has a habit of playing aggressively and then letting up until they are forced to play aggressively again before it’s too late. We’ve been trying to tell them over and over that you don’t let down until the last out of the game otherwise they will come back."

The Panthers take a trip to face Fruita-Monument for a twin bill beginning at 2 p.m. Friday, Sept. 22. They move on to Montrose for a doubleheader beginning at noon Saturday, Sept. 23. They return home for back-to-back twin bills on Sept. 29-30 at the Cortez Softball Complex.