Joseph City won all three games played last week beginning the week with a 3-1 home field win over rival Mogollon on April 9. That win along with sweeping a double-header over Mayer last Friday moved the Wildcats to 11th in the 1A rankings as of Saturday.
The Wildcats scored twice in the bottom of the first inning grabbing the early lead against the Mustangs. The lead held through three scoreless innings before each team scored once in the fifth ending the scoring with the Cats on top 3-1.
The Wildcats finished with five hits in the game. Stephen Woody was 1 for 3; Avery Buckley, 1 for 2; Colter Westover, 1 for 2; Rance Haddox, 1 for 3; and Cameron Baldwin went 1 for 3.
Jesse Hulsey pitched four scoreless innings allowing just four hits with three strikeouts and walked two. Baldwin gave up one run on three hits with three strikeouts and walked one.
Hosting Mayer for two games on Friday, the Wildcats took the first game 11-10 in eight innings. Both Wildcat teams scored three in the first and matched each other again with one in the second. After Mayer went on top with a single run in the fourth, Joseph City moved ahead scoring three in that frame. The Cats added one in the fifth and two more in the sixth to lead 10-5 with just the seventh inning left. Mayer wouldn’t go away and knotted the game after scoring five runs in the top of the seventh to force extra innings. Joseph City scored in the bottom of the eighth to win the game 11-10.
KJ Kinlicheenie went 3 for 4 with a triple; Buckley was 2 for 4; Westover, 2 for 4; Jay Edwards, 2 for 4; Haddox, 2 for 5; Baldwin, 2 for 4; Woody 1 for 2, Jacobson Begay, 1 for 2; Kaden Moss, 1 for 3; Rhett Beard, 1 for 1; and Hulsey went 1 for 2, with a triple.
Hulsey, Haddox and Baldwin combined on the hill to allow 10 runs on 11 hits with one strikeout and walked only two.
The second game lasted just five innings due to time, but Joseph City prevailed 6-2. They led 3 to 0 after the first and 4-2 after three innings. The final runs of the shortened game came in the bottom of the fourth with Joseph City adding two to their run total.
Kinlicheenie went 2 for 3, with a triple; Hulsey was 2 for 3, with a double; Buckley, 1 for 1; and Westover was 1 for 3.
Baldwin pitched three and one-third innings giving up two runs on four hits with one strikeout and one walk. Moss worked one and two-third innings, allowing no runs and no hits with four strikeouts and walked just one.
After they played at Mogollon on Tuesday, the Wildcats will play in the Morenci Lions Baseball Invitational tournament this weekend. Joseph City was 7-8 in regular season games heading into Tuesday’s game at Mogollon.
