Cats complete unlikely comeback

Clovis’ offense started to shine about the same time the stadium lights were turned on.

Trailing by 10 runs at the game’s midway point, Clovis rallied to beat Plainview 15-14 on Tuesday in a West Texas Baseball League game at Bell Park.

Ryan Denton capped off the improbable comeback by singling home Jared Montoya from second base in the bottom of the ninth inning to end the 3 1/2 hour contest that started in the bright sunlight and ended well into the night.

“We played sloppy early but picked up the pace,” Clovis coach Brian Cronk said. “The kids showed a lot of heart in coming back from a 12-3 deficit.”

The comeback started harmlessly enough with a run in the sixth and two more in the seventh.

The Wildcats took the lead with an eight-run eighth inning, highlighted by a pair of RBI doubles from John Props and Denton’s three-run double.

Mark Replogle added a triple and Richard Urban a double in the uprising.

“We just started chipping away, and then in the eighth, the hitting just became contagious,” Cronk said.

Cronk said Plainview was coming off playing five games over the weekend and looked tired late in the game.

Led by Denton and Montoya, the Wildcats finished with 18 hits, including six for extra bases.

Denton finished 4-for-6 with five RBI while Montoya, who pitched the first four-plus innings, was 3-for-4 with four runs scored.

Clovis committed seven errors, including three in the ninth inning that allowed Plainview to tie the score.

Urban picked up the win in relief.

Mark Young pitched five up-and-down innings of middle relief.

After allowing five runs in the fifth inning, Young settled down and blanked the Dirty Dogs until the ninth inning.

Young struck out 10 in five innings of work.