The Wildcats opened their 2018 campaign on a tough note losing to the Arete Prep Chargers 15-3 on Monday of last week.
Playing at the Red Mountain Sports Complex, the Cats gave up four runs in each of the first two innings. Joseph City managed just one run in the first and scored twice in the fifth but it wasn’t enough to hold off the 10 run rule as the Chargers scored three more in the third, then put four on the board again in the fourth inning to get the win.
Joseph City finished with just six hits in the game. KJ Kinlicheenie went 2 for 2 and scored twice; Avery Buckley was 2 for 3 with 2 RBIs; Colter Westover went 1 for 3 with an RBI; and Rance Haddox was 1 for 2.
Kinlicheenie, Buckley and Jesse Hulsey combined to work four innings. Collectively they faced 33 Charger batters giving up 15 runs on 12 hits with four strikeouts and walked eight.
The Cats bounced back in a good way on Friday sweeping both games of a double-header against visiting Ash Fork. Joseph City won the first game 23-12, then took the second game 8-5 in five innings.
The Wildcats put their 2-1 mark on the line on Monday when they hosted Greyhills in a double-header contest. This weekend they will host several teams in the Joseph City Baseball Invitational tournament.
Joseph City will return to regular season action following their spring break when they play at St. Johns on March 20.
