by 
Copper Basin News
The second-seeded Ray baseball team will face No. 10-seed Superior for the third time this season on Friday, May 8, in the quarterfinals of the Division IV State Championship. The Bearcats will be looking for their third-straight win against the Panthers after winning both previous matchups, including a 7 – 6 victory at Superior on April 24. The winner of Friday’s game advances to the semi-finals, which will take place at Goodyear Sports Complex on Saturday, May 9.
The Section VI champions, who had a bye in the first round, reached Thursday’s quarterfinals after winning a second round game against No. 14-seed Gila Bend last Saturday, 14 – 0.
The Cats pounded out 13 hits, which included a home run by senior Robbin Newman, in the win against the Gila Monsters. A total of five Ray hitters had at least two hits in the game, including Seth Harmon, Derek Pacheco, Kolton Bray, Jordan Pace, and Douglas McPeak.
Pacheco led the team with three RBI. Harmon, Bray and Newman drove in two runs each.
The Bearcats were without top starting pitcher Destry Yocum, who missed the game due to illness, but received outstanding performances from McPeak and freshman Cole Yocum in his absence. The duo combined to throw a one-hitter.
McPeak picked up the win after throwing two innings of no-hit ball. He walked one and struck out two. He was relieved by Yocum, who allowed only one hit and two walks. He struck out seven in earning the three-inning save.
Friday’s game versus Superior is scheduled for 6 p.m. with the winner scheduled to play at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
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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