ROSWELL, New Mexico - After pushing across the game-tying run in the top half of the ninth, the Dodge City Community College baseball team saw their three-game win streak snapped in an 8-7 road loss to New Mexico Military Institute on Friday, February 24th.
DC3 is now 3-2 overall after stranding 11 runners in the game while the Broncos move a game over .500 at 7-6 overall.
The Conquistadors would make three separate comebacks in the game, after trailing by a single run after the first and eighth innings while trailing by three runs heading into the top of the third.
A slow start to the game would see Dodge City go down in order to start the game before NMMI would take advantage of a leadoff baserunner on an error by bringing him around to score.
Dauson Tate would tie things in the second with back-to-back singles by the Pueblo, CO native and
Gavin Gifford before
Talon Schaller would drive the freshman home on a sacrifice fly. New Mexico Military would respond with a bases-loaded triple in the bottom half of the inning to re-gain the lead and put DC3 into what would amount to their largest deficit of the game. Gifford and Schaller would get the Dodge City offense rolling in the fourth with two consecutive hits to start the inning before
Jonny Chavez would drive in Gifford and a
Brayden Cook sacrifice would bring Schaller home to cut the Bronco lead to 4-3.
After starting pitcher
Cole Brandon would get a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the fourth, DC3 would take their first lead of the game by scoring three runs on and three hits, but would strand one of their 11 runners on the day in the frame. Both offenses would stall for the next two innings as neither team could manage to push a run across with the Conquistadors stranding a pair at second and third in the top of the sixth. Dodge City's lead would be cut in half in the bottom of the seventh before a double-play would end any threat that Dodge City had in the top of the eighth. A leadoff home run followed by a triple would knock Conquistador reliever
J.T. Mossberg out of the game as New Mexico Military would take a 7-6 lead with two runs on four hits to head to the top of the ninth just three outs away from victory. Tate would manage to get on first with a leadoff hit-by-pitch before a Gifford single would advance him to third and a Schaller fielder's choice would tie the game at seven. Schaller would end up stranded at third with a prime opportunity to take the lead into the bottom of the ninth gone by the wayside. DC3 would be record just a single out in the final frame of the game, as the first three Bronco batters would reach base before a fielder's choice would bring in the game-winning, walk-off run.
Gifford would lead the Conquistadors at the plate with a three for five performance with two runs scored while Schaller would drive in three runs on two hits in four at-bats. Schaller and Gifford along with
Richard Fullerton would record Dodge City's extra-base hits in the game.
Jeremy Hidalgo would take the loss on the mound, throwing 1.1 innings and giving up just a single run and issuing two free passes. Brandon would go five innings and strike out three while Mossberg would toss two innings and give up three runs on three hits.
A 12 p.m. (MST) doubleheader featuring the same two squads will take place tomorrow in Roswell as DC3 will look to bounce back in a similar way to last weekend's season-opening series. After dropping game one to Otero last week, the Conquistadors responded by winning the final three games of the series.
