{"id":16581,"date":"2025-09-10T18:53:16","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T18:53:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/late-rally-sends-demons-softball-past-panthers\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T03:58:38","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T03:58:38","slug":"late-rally-sends-demons-softball-past-panthers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/late-rally-sends-demons-softball-past-panthers\/","title":{"rendered":"Late rally sends Demons softball past Panthers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"M-CHS
M-CHS sophomore Tinley Philpott rounds second in a contest against Durango at Englehart Field in Cortez. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

CORTEZ \u2013 They might as well get used to it.<\/p>\n

While most underclassmen may not have fully experienced the varsity-level rivalry between the Demons and Panthers over the past decade, their 2025 encounters provided an intense introduction. Both Durango and Montezuma-Cortez featured upperclassmen starters for the Panthers\u2019 home finale, but with rosters stacked with Class of \u201928 standouts, the rivalry appears poised to continue for years to come.<\/p>\n

On Aug. 25, the Demons showcased the promise of the season with a 9-5 come-from-behind win \u2013 bolstering Durango\u2019s best start since 2017. Their Tuesday afternoon rematch at Englehart Field in Cortez felt like d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu.<\/p>\n

Head coach Sara Clair and her Demons (6-3) fell behind early before a late surge in the final two innings secured a 10-5 win.<\/p>\n

The Panthers (2-11) blanked the Demons in four of their first five turns at bat behind strong pitching from junior Jayden White. Meanwhile, sophomore Ava Hawkins drove in one of two Panther runs in the second inning with an RBI groundout after the Panthers loaded the bases.<\/p>\n

\"M-CHS
M-CHS junior Jayden White delivers a pitch in a contest against Durango at Englehart Field in Cortez. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Durango responded with a pair of big hits in the third to take a 3-2 lead, as junior Alexis Wood and sophomores Abigail Gordon and Kaitlyn Downey peppered the outfield wall with extra-base hits as part of a 10-hit afternoon for Clair\u2019s team.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe faced 60-plus MPH pitching in Grand Junction over the weekend,\u201d said Clair. \u201cSo you could tell that our girls were out in front a bit to start.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Panthers tied the game with a run in the fourth, then reclaimed the lead with two more in the fifth, as sophomore Tinley Philpott scored twice as a pinch runner.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when the Durango bats took over. The Demons capitalized on timely hitting, with junior Brooke Casias scoring three times and junior Marcela Jimenez and senior Alexa Capitan driving in key runs during a massive rally. Five runs in the top of the seventh sealed the win, as Durango leaned on senior ace Jenna Glueck to close the door in the circle.<\/p>\n

\"M-CHS
M-CHS sophomore Madisyn Gapp makes the turn at third base in a contest against Durango at Englehart Field in Cortez. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cWhile we didn\u2019t have our bats today, we capitalized when we needed,\u201d Clair said. \u201cThey kept grinding all the way to the end \u2013 I\u2019m proud of our girls and their will to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

Durango pitching allowed just four hits and three walks, but M-CHS continued to show the grit that helped them hang tough against larger schools in Berthoud over the weekend. First-year head coach Anthony Mestas said he appreciates the Panthers\u2019 approach at the plate and in the circle.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re growing \u2013 and they\u2019re starting to get the speed of playing varsity,\u201d Mestas said. \u201cThey\u2019re going to the plate with a plan and doing their best to put the ball in play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both White and classmate Raegan Veach collected hits, and their steady presence on and off the field is something Mestas and his coaching staff have leaned on.<\/p>\n

\"M-CHS
M-CHS freshman Aubrey Taveira reels in a grab in centerfield in a contest against Durango at Englehart Field in Cortez. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

\u201cWe\u2019re using their leadership to help develop these girls,\u201d Mestas said. \u201cJayden pitched a phenomenal game today \u2013 she helps keep the team\u2019s energy up, and Raegan is showing them where they need to go with the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Demons improved their slim record advantage against their nearest rival to 12-10-1 over the past 11 years, with Durango sweeping the season series for the second straight year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter what each team\u2019s record is, this is always going to be a good game,\u201d Clair added.<\/p>\n

With plenty more rivalry games to come, Mestas and his Panthers know they have a bright future ahead.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re looking forward to a few more years with this group \u2013 they\u2019re developing into our culture and philosophy,\u201d the M-CHS head coach said.<\/p>\n

Durango will enjoy an extended break before returning to the field against Battle Mountain on Friday, Sept. 19, while the Panthers travel to Basalt for a doubleheader with the Longhorns on Saturday, Sept. 13.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

M-CHS-Durango clash provides another diamond classic<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16582,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[38,39,28,37,36],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-16581","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-dolores-high-school","tag-dove-creek-high-school","tag-headlines","tag-mancos-high-school","tag-montezuma-cortez-high-school"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16581","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16581"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16581\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20794,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16581\/revisions\/20794"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16582"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16581"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16581"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16581"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=16581"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}