Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
ARTESIA — It was a rough day for Portales softball, to say the least. If it wasn't already a tall enough task in having to play 5A's No. 1 team in Artesia in a doubleheader on the road Tuesday, trying to find ways to manufacture runs and prevent runs proved to be too big of an obstacle for the Rams.
Artesia needed just three innings to run-rule Portales in Game 1, 16-0. As for Game 2, the Bulldogs won 11-0 in five innings, but the more impressive stat about that game was Kali and Rylee Crandall's combined no-hitter for Artesia.
"Not good," Rams coach Nathan Dodge said of his team's performance on Tuesday. "Not taking anything away from Artesia — they are way good and hit the ball really well. (But) we have a lot to work on in the next few weeks."
Artesia (12-2) started off Game 1 with four runs in the first inning, followed by five in the second and seven in the third, good enough to satisfy the 15-run lead after three innings run-rule requirement.
In the opening game, Portales (3-9) had just two hits, one by Devyn Lopez and one by Kim Hay. As for the Bulldogs, they had 11, led by Gabrielle Gomez' 2-for-3, two home run and five RBI outing. Adrianna Baeza, meanwhile, went 1-for-2 with a homer and five RBIs, as well.
Game 2 didn't get any better for the Rams, as they were no-hit in the 11-0 defeat. Kali Crandall had four strikeouts in four innings, while Rylee Crandall finished off the final inning with two strikeouts, but couldn't quite complete the perfect game attempt, as Wendy Baeza drew a walk.
Melody Payne went 1-for-3 with a dinger and four RBIs, while Chanler Groves hit a homer of her own, finishing 1-for-2 with two RBIs. In all, the Bulldogs scored 27 runs on 17 hits and 10 walks in eight innings on Tuesday.
The Rams will look to snap their six-game skid on Saturday afternoon, when they travel to Moriarty to take on the Pintos in a doubleheader to open up District 4-4A play.
