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Senior Jacob Pace was named Player of the Week by the Ray Booster Club. The Bearcats were trailing 1-2 to San Manuel in the Top of the 7th. Jacob hit a grand slam to secure a 5-2 victory over the Miners.
Copper Basin News
Jacob Pace had only one hit against 13th-ranked San Manuel during last Friday’s game, but he made it count. With his team trailing 2 – 1 in the final inning against the Miners, the senior came up with bases loaded and with one swing gave the Bearcats a three-lead, hitting a grand slam homerun that scored Seth Harmon, Derek Pacheco, Destry Yocum, and, of course, himself.
Pace’s heroics led the ninth-ranked Bearcats to a 5 – 2 victory and their sixth win in their last seven games. The lone loss during that stretch came just one game earlier against sixth-ranked Miami. According to head coach Rene Pacheco, the Cats did not play well against the Vandals, making Friday’s win a little more comforting.
For the first six innings in Friday’s game, the Cats’ offense struggled, scoring only one run in the third inning to cut the Miners’ 2 – 0 lead in half.
The Cats outhit the Miners, 8 – 6, but had little to show for it until the final inning. Derek Pacheco, whose .518 batting average is second best in the section, was 3-for-4 with a double. Seth Harmon had two hits. Destry Yocum, who was the starting pitcher, had one hits as did Robbin Newman and Douglas McPeak.
Yocum, a senior, pitched two innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out three. McPeak and Yocum’s brother Cole, a freshman, came on in relief. McPeak pitched two scoreless innings before the younger Yocum pitched three scoreless innings to close the game. He fanned seven Miners’ hitters during his eighth appearance of the season.
With the win, the Bearcats improved to 5 – 1 in Section VI, one game behind first-place and second-ranked Superior. The Cats hosted the Panthers on Apr. 7 in a matchup of the top two teams in the section and two top-10 ranked teams in the state.
Upcoming schedule: Apr. 9 at Duncan, Apr. 10 at San Carlos (6 p.m.), Apr. 13 at Gilbert Classical Academy, and Apr. 14 at top-ranked Desert Christian. All games are scheduled for 4 p.m. unless noted otherwise.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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