Manitou Springs faltered in the seventh inning against Jefferson Academy on April 14, resulting in arguably their most disappointing loss of the season. But the Mustangs bounced back nicely, getting two huge wins against Salida to kick off Tri-Peaks play.
The wins over the Spartans came at a double-header on April 16 and the Mustangs (8-3-1 overall, 2-0 Tri-Peaks) scored a combined 42 runs in the two games, winning 21-3 and 21-8. The hope is that those wins will help players so intent on succeeding to calm down a bit and not put so much pressure on themselves.
“We talked a lot Friday after that (8-7) Jefferson Academy loss,” coach Brandon DeMatto said. “I don’t know if this is as much about mental toughness as much as it is that these kids want it so badly that they get so deep into their own thoughts.”
That didn’t look to be the case against the Spartans. The Mustangs seemed to play with a little more emotional freedom. They batted .469 as a team in the first game against Salida.
Sophomore Canon Feist went 2-for-2 and drove in a pair of runs, and senior Tate Christian went 3-for-4 with two RBIs of his own. Junior Andrew Rhodes went 2-for-5, but blasted his first home run of the season. Senior Raymond McCaskey also homered, showing that the Mustangs have plenty of power in the lineup this season.
Freshman Hayden Martinez was the big bat in the second game as he went 3-for-4 and drove in two runs. Jake Thomson went 2-for-3 with three RBIs. Getting these wins will, hopefully, let the Mustangs reset their approach as league games become the priority for the remainder of the season.
“We see how much fun we can have with the game,” senior Ethan Boren said. “We just have to do better at transferring that mentality into the games that have more importance.”
The next round of those come Saturday, April 23, as Colorado Springs Christian School visits Manitou for a Tri-Peaks double-header. If the Mustangs can sweep the Lions, they’ll keep pace with Buena Vista, the only other team in the Tri-Peaks League’s West division that has yet to suffer a league loss.