Durango needs an assist from bitter rival Gorman

Spencer Patterson

Friday, April 30, 1999 | 10:52 a.m.

The bad blood between baseball rivals Bishop Gorman and Durango was never more evident than on Thursday night, when the two clubs met with a possible Sunset Division title in the balance.

Moments after Jared Bonnell's solo homer gave the host Trailblazers a 6-5 eight-inning victory, the teams and their coaches began jawing at one another in a tense postgame confrontation.

Yet ironically, Durango will need to put aside any bad feelings that remain from the incident in a hurry. Because if the Trailblazers hope to capture the Sunset crown, they'll need some help from those very same Gaels when the regular season concludes today.

A Durango win over Bonanza, combined with a Gorman victory against Cimarron-Memorial, will give the Blazers the conference championship and the all-important top seed that goes with it. A Cimarron win would send the Spartans to the title, regardless of Durango's outcome.

"All we can do is win our ballgame and hope those guys beat Cimarron," Durango coach Mike Gomez said. "I'm Catholic, so I'll say a few Hail Marys tonight for them."

Although the game was played in a rainstorm, the state's two top-ranked clubs gave their loyal fans another great battle, with the lead changing hands three times.

Gorman (24-3, 12-3 Sunset) appeared to take control of the contest in the fifth inning, scoring four runs to take a 5-4 lead. But the Trailblazers (26-2, 13-2) knotted things up in the bottom of the sixth, plating the tying run on a wild pitch.

After the Gaels squandered a bases-loaded opportunity in the top of the eighth, Gomez sent Bonnell -- his starting pitcher -- back into the contest against Gorman junior Brandon Boesch. Bonnell promptly deposited Boesch's 3-1 offering over the fence and just inside the right-field foul pole to win it for the hosts.

"I didn't think I was going to re-enter," Bonnell said. "Coach went up to me and said, 'Get into the game and get it done.' "

As the two teams lined up to shake hands, players began sparring verbally, prompting Gorman coach Tim Chambers and Gomez to confront one another behind second base.

"It's too bad after you play such a great high school baseball game, but you're dealing with young kids and sometimes a look and a stare is all it takes," Gomez said.

The loss ended the Gaels' bid for a share of a seventh consecutive Sunset title. Gorman ace Nate Fouts suffered a cut on a finger on his throwing hand earlier this week. The injury will likely sideline him until the zone playoffs begin next Wednesday.