Freshman right-handed hurler Joseph Rivera scattered six hits and struck out five batters as Cenyon Scarborough went 3-for-3 to lift Socorro to a 16-8 win over Mescalero Apache on April 5.

The Warriors fell behind 2-0 in the first inning but quickly rebounded with a four-run rally in the bottom of the frame.

Scarborough wasn’t the only hot bat; David Gutierrez Jr. and Alex Amaro went 3-4. Cullen Baxter, Sebastian Mercado, and Angel Perez each had two hits on the day.

Amaro led Socorro on the basepaths with four stolen bases, while Perez and Mercado swiped three.

Gutierrez hit the mound in relief in the fifth inning and struck out nine of the 11 batters. He didn’t allow a hit, throwing 30 strikes in 47 pitches.

SHS 10 MAHS 6
Scarborough picked up the win and got help from Jacob Angel and David Gutierrez to close out the win.

Scarborough sat down seven batters over 3.1 innings, and Gutierrez continued to show how comfortable he is with his transition to closing games with six strikeouts over three innings of work.

“We’re coming together as a team and seeing the ball better at the plate,” Socorro coach Lawrence Montano said.

The Warriors open District 3-3A action on the road on Saturday against Hot Springs in a doubleheader. Socorro then comes home to face the Tigers in a single game on Tuesday.

Class 3A’s No. 1 Cobre currently holds the district’s best record at 12-3-1 and is the team to beat to win a league championship. The Warriors have surged over the last two weeks, and Montano knows anything is possible.

“I think we’ve come a long way, and the fundamentals, if you look at it, we were in Las Vegas, we had a total of three errors, and we had two victories,” Montano said. “We weren’t hitting the ball. Fundamentally, against Mescalero, they made a few mistakes out there, some throwing errors and stuff like that. Still, they’ve come so far that they’re not dropping balls in the outfield. They’re not fumbling balls in the infield, and they’re not just outright missing them.”

Through eight games, the statistics show (10 or more appearances) Scarborough is leading the way at the plate with a .571 average, Amaro is at .571 and Gutierrez is stroking a .435 average.

Gutierrez leads the way on the mound in strikeouts with 25, Scarborough has 17, and Rivera has nine.

Russell Huffman, El Defensor Chieftain Asst. Editor