By Greg Perkins After dropping their first seven games of the season, the Wildcats picked up their first two wins of the campaign sweeping a home-field doubleheader over Ash Fork on Friday. Prior to those two wins, the Cats fell to Round Valley on Monday, then dropped another game against Williams on Tuesday of last week. Playing in Springerville on April 12, Joseph City started well with three runs in the first. The bad news is Round Valley started better scoring eight runs in the bottom of the first. Joseph City scored three more in the third and added an additional two in the fifth making the score 8-9 at that point. Round Valley scored the game’s final run in the bottom of the sixth to win the game 10-8. T.J. Westover went 3 for 3 with two doubles. Avery Buckley was 2 for 3 with one double; Tyler Penrod, 3 for 3 with a double; Jay Edwards, 1 for 4 with a double; and Zane Johnson, 1 for 3, as was Owen Beatty. Brody Penrod pitched 4.1 innings giving up two runs on four hits. Edwards worked two-thirds of an inning allowing seven runs and Karter Lampsa gave up one run on one hit. Hosting Williams on Tuesday, the Wildcats lead 2-0 after two innings, but from that point the Vikings took control. Williams scored seven runs in the third and had another big inning with six more runs in the seventh to win the game 17-8. Buckley was 2 for 4 with a home run blast. Penrod went 1 for 4 with a double; and Bannon Johnstun, Beatty and Westover each had one hit. Buckley, Johnston and Lampsa combined to pitch seven innings. They allowed 17 runs on 10 hits, with five walks and eight strikeouts. Hosting Ash Fork on Friday in the twin bill, the Cats took game one 11-1 in five innings. Four first inning runs got the game off on the right foot and four more in the bottom of the fifth ended it under the 10-run rule. Johnstun, Buckley and Edwards each hit doubles. Johnstun went 3 for 3; Beatty, 2 for 4; John Weightman, 1 for 1; Jackson Bush, 1 for 2; Buckley, 1 for 4; Lampsa, 1 for 2; and Edwards was 1 for 1. Lampsa worked 4.1 innings on the hill giving up just one run on four hits with two walks and struck out 10. Joseph City won the second game 18-8 but had to come from behind after trailing 6-4 through two innings. They tied the game at 3-3 in the third, then fell behind again briefly after Ash Fork scored twice in the fourth. The Cats answered that with three runs then put the game away with eight runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. After hosting Mayer in a doubleheader contest on Tuesday, Joseph City will welcome in Fredonia for another doubleheader match up on Saturday. The Wildcats enter this week with an overall record of 2-7.
