Panthers sweep Fredericksburg in bi-district playoffs, give Cavazos 100th career win
(Geronimo) – Navarro gave head baseball coach Kris Cavazos his 100th career win with a 3-1 road triumph over Fredericksburg on Friday in the first game of their 4A bi-district playoff series, and the Panthers completed the 2-0 sweep with a 4-1 home win on Saturday in Geromino.
The Panthers took a 2-0 lead in the first inning of Game 1 when Tristan Brashears singled in Sam Muniga and Jaxen Monkerud drove in Reece Rojas with a groundout.
Aden Supak scored Kaden Monkerud’s courtesy runner Hunter Monroe with a two-out RBI single to make it 3-0 in the top of the fourth, and the Battlin’ Billies scored their only run on an error in the bottom half of the frame.
Fredericksburg had runners in scoring position in each of the next three innings, but sophomore starting pitcher Bryce Nall surrendered no further damage on the scoreboard.
Nall struck out the final two batters he faced and moved his record to 9-1 after allowing the single unearned run on four hits with five strikeouts and five walks in 6-2/3 innings. Hunter Monroe relieved Nall in the bottom of the seventh and worked around a walk to induce the final out and notch his fourth save of the season.
“Bryce Nall threw his butt off, battling a little elbow injury, but he fought through it, and he did a great job,” Navarro head coach Kris Cavazos said.
Mark Wozniak drove in Sam Muniga with a sacrifice fly to put Navarro in front 1-0 in the first inning of Game 2 on Saturday.
Fredericksburg tied it up in the third, and the Panthers reclaimed the lead for good with a run in the fifth. With two outs and the bases empty, Brashears singled and stole second. Mark Wozniak singled in Brashears, who finished the game 3-3 and the series 5-6.
The Panthers capitalized on a sequence of Fredericksburg miscues to add two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth. Will Boswell reached on an error, took second on a sacrifice bunt by Kaden Monkerud, and scored when a throw from the outfield after an Aden Supak single sailed past the Fredericksburg catcher. Supak came all the way around to score on an error as well.
Jaxen Monkerud worked around a walk in the bottom of the seventh to close out a complete-game win an push his season record to 10-0. He allowed one run on four hits with eight strikeouts and four walks in seven innings of work.
The work of Monkerud, Nall, and Monroe on the mound and a nearly flawless defensive effort behind them proved critical during a series that saw the Panthers score seven total runs after averaging 8.5 per game during the regular season.
“Our pitching staff has been great all year long,” Cavazos said. “Same thing with our defense. Baseball is a game of failure, obviously, so the bats will go cold. So that’s something we can always rely on is pitching and defense.”
Navarro takes a 16-game winning streak and a 27-3 record into the area round of the playoffs. The opponent and details had yet to be finalized at press time.
Marion baseball dominates Comfort in bi-district sweep
(Jourdanton) – The Bulldogs are headed to the area round of the 3A Region IV baseball playoffs after run-ruling Comfort 12-0 and 14-0 to sweep their best-of-three bi-district series on Friday in Jourdanton.
Konner Harborth turned in a dominant effort on the mound in the first game, allowing just two hits and striking out four in four scoreless innings.
Jake Burris launched a home run as part of a 3-4 outing wiht three RBIs. Ryken Autry recorded a double, two RBIs, and a run scored. Bryce Gonyer drove in a run. Logan Ross, Chance Lowery, and Jayden Williams each had a base hit and two runs scored.
Williams struck out nine in four scoreless innings to pick up the win in the second game.
Lowery collected three hits and five RBIs. Burris, Autry, and Ty Blake each drove in two runs. Kallen Bek logged a pair of hits, drove in a run, and scored three times. Chris Mott doubled twice and scored twice.
Marion is 23-6 and carries a 13-game winning streak into an area playoff matchup with Columbus. The time, location, and series format had yet to be finalized at press time.
Navarro softball season ends in area playoff loss to Sinton
(Three Rivers) – The Panthers dropped out of the 4A Region IV softball playoffs Friday evening with a 4-2 loss to Sinton in the area round of the bracket at Three Rivers High School.
Sydni Stevens went 3-3, doubled twice, and drove in a run. Laylin Sturm and Sam Mundine each scored once. Mary Gilliam went 2-3.
Sam Wegman pitched a complete game, allowing four runs on nine hits in six innings.
After winning the District 27-4A championship and advancing two playoff rounds, Navarro’s final season record is 24-7.
Vanderbilt-Industrial hands Marion softball season-ending loss
(Weimar) – Marion’s softball season concluded Friday with a 16-0 loss to Vanderbilt-Industrial in the area round of the 3A Region IV playoffs at Weimar High School.
The Bulldogs only managed three hits on the night – a double by Kristina Miles, and singles by Peyton Smith-Velasquez and Alyssa Robles.
The Districxt 26-3A champion Bulldogs finish the year with a final record of 14-14-1.