SALINAS VALLEY — Soledad Aztecs lost 14-7 to the Palma Chieftains in a game that started out close but got away from the Aztecs toward the end of the contest on May 10.
“We hung with them (Chieftains) early but towards the middle innings, they got ahead and I feel we didn’t give the full effort that we could have,” said Aztecs head coach Damian Ryan. “I feel like that we had packed it in, and that’s something that we never want as Aztecs. We never quit.”
Fabian Cabrera went 2 x 4 with a double and two runs batted in and Johnathan Carrillo had two RBIs.
Last Wednesday the Aztecs entertained the Greenfield Bruins and won a 10-0 game in five innings.
Cabrera led the way with a 1 x 1 day and took a walk with an RBI and three runs scored. Dominic Chavez had two RBIs with a 2 x 3 day and a run scored, while Eric Segura and Chavez had a 2 x 3 day with two RBIs, as did Carrillo.
“I was very happy with the way we bounced back from our loss on Monday,” Ryan said. “Greenfield is always a tough situation and they played hard. I got a lot of respect for Coach Green, but we were able to get it done without using too many pitchers. Playing in the upper division league and three days a week, it has been really taxing on our pitchers. Dom Chavez and Andres Mora were able to get us through this with minimal pitches.”
In their final game of the week, the Aztecs took a 5-1 lead against San Benito going into the seventh inning. Unfortunately, Soledad gave up five runs to lose the game, 6-5.
Segura pitched five innings with eight strike outs against perennial powerhouse Hollister. Cabrera was 2 x 3 with a stolen base and runs scored. Segura was 2 x 4 with an RBI and Jeremie Banuelos had a solo homerun in the sixth inning that put Soledad ahead 5-1.
“We have got to learn to be humble and respect our opponent,” Ryan said. “We got a little ahead of ourselves and didn’t complete the game. I like to preach to our guys that we have to get 21 outs to win. This year we have been winning by three or more runs on more than four occasions and came up with a loss. Maybe we are snakebit. All I know is that we are starting a very young team, and I hope that we learn from every situation. Otherwise all these lessons are for nothing. That being said, I feel very strongly about this young group. We got a great group of guys who are willing to learn, and are eager to be coached up every day. I couldn’t be more proud of my team.”
Gonzales Spartans won their second game of the season, defeating the Greenfield Bruins 6-3 at Greenfield. Champ Flores pitched a complete game with five strikeouts. Jayson Flores had two hits scoring twice and Sebastian Sanchez had a triple with an RBI. Adrian Zavala had a big hit that brought home Jaycob Valdez.
Greenfield held a 2-0 lead after the first inning and the Spartans tied the game in the top of the second. Greenfield scored a run in the bottom of the second, and briefly led by a 3-2 score. Gonzales then scored four runs in the top of the third to lead 6-3.
Eric Hernandez led Greenfield with two hits, while Daniel Pantoja and Alejandro Gutierrez added basehits. Manuel Gutierrez took the loss on the mound, pitching seven innings with four strikeouts.
King City beat Gonzales 11-1 on a no-hitter by pitcher John Michael Soto. The senior hurler threw six innings with seven strikeouts and was a beast on the base paths with three stolen bases and four hits. Levi Hood had two hits and three RBIs and Ryland Hindershied added two hits and two RBIs.
On Saturday, the Mustangs fell to the host Pacific Coast Breakers by a 6-2 score. Eli Clavijo pitched all six innings and all six runs were unearned.
“We made three errors that gave up the runs,” said King City head coach Lorenzo Espino. “Again, we hit the ball right at them. Sam Umbarger got a hit along with John Michael Soto and Eli Clavijo.”
Soledad hosted Pacific Grove on Monday and North Monterey County on Wednesday and will play at Carmel High on Friday. Gonzales will host Robert Louis Steven on Thursday.
King City hosted Greenfield on Tuesday and will host North County on Thursday and Templeton on Friday.
