Basic win sets up showdown

Spencer Patterson

Friday, April 28, 2000 | 9:59 a.m.

With nationally ranked baseball powers Green Valley and Silverado in the mix, the Southeast Division was expected to feature a two-team race this season.

Yet there Basic and Chaparral were on Thursday, battling for a share of first place in the state's toughest conference with one day remaining in the regular season.

With a hard-fought 7-6 victory, the visiting Wolves moved into a tie with Silverado atop the division. The winner of today's Silverado at Basic game will capture the title and a No. 1 seed for next week's Sunrise Region Tournament.

"This is high school baseball at its best," said Basic coach Mike Kazek, whose team improved to 22-5 (5-2 Southeast). "I challenge anybody else to have a four-team division race like ours."

The Cowboys (18-8, 4-3) fell into a tie with the Gators, one game behind the league leaders. Those two squads will meet today at 3 p.m. at Green Valley.

"Chaparral is as good a team as there is in the Valley," Kazek said.

"I coached here at Chap a few years ago and I know some of these kids, and they're gutty."

Basic seized control of Thursday's game with a six-run fifth inning, getting to Chaparral right-hander Soren Nickels for four hits, including a long two-run double by Leeland Montoya.

Nickels also helped the Wolves' cause, walking two batters in the inning and hitting another.

By the time the Cowboys' brought Chris Hansen in relief, the visitors had a commanding 6-2 lead.

"We had some timely hits in that big inning," Kazek said. "I just wanted them to stay aggressive at the plate."

Basic added another run in the top of the seventh, and it turned out the Wolves would need it to hang on. Right-hander Jesse Craig, who yielded just six hits in the first six innings, began to tire in the final frame.

The Cowboys put together a two-out rally off the Basic starter, sending Craig to the dugout in favor of left-handed reliever Jeff Castle. Then with the bases loaded, shortstop Mark Rose booted a Chris Hansen grounder, allowing two runs to score and keeping the hosts alive.

But with Chaparral trailing by just one run, right-hander Matt Elliott relieved Castle and stuck out Daniel Scott with the bases loaded to earn the save.

Montoya and Jared Prisbrey went 2-for-4 for Basic while Chris Trzaska went 3-for-4 for the Cowboys.