Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Quay County Little League’s age 8-10 team finished an unexpected second place Sunday in the District 4 Tournament at Raton.
Quay County defeated all comers in the tournament except for Taos, which notched two wins, including in the championship game.
Quay County started the three-day tournament with an 18-3 victory over Mora, then conquered (Las Vegas) Robertson 13-5 in the second round.
In its first tournament matchup against Taos, coach Villanueva said his team was leading 15-5 in the fourth inning, but ran out of pitchers. That enabled Taos to rally to a 16-15 win.
Quay County then defeated La Plaza 15-4, setting up a championship game Sunday against Taos.
Villanueva said his team stayed close early, but ran out of pitchers again during the 24-9 loss.
“We put anybody who could throw on the mound, and it got ugly,” he said.
Cameron Villanueva earned two of the three victories for Quay County. Third baseman Aiden Navarro was the team’s best hitter.
“Everybody thought we were the underdog, but this team came to play,” Quay County coach Javier Villanueva said. “Our hitting and baserunning were good, and our defense was phenomenal.”
Trinity Gonzales and Hudson Liles, whose Quay County 10-12 team was eliminated earlier in the tournament, later augmented the 8-10 squad’s pitching staff.