Bearcats fall in season opener

Due to the previous winter storm that pushed through, things have slowed down a bit for the Bearcats baseball team. While the Ladycats softball team got their regular season underway already, the Bearcats did not until Monday, Feb. 28, at Weatherford.

The Bearcats were scheduled to host the Southwest Ford Classic the weekend that the storm came through. Due to the frigid conditions, the tournament was canceled and Aledo had to find an alternative. Weatherford, who was also looking for alternatives, called up and the teams agreed to a double header at Weatherford High School.

The first game started off slowly as only one player from Aledo found his way in scoring position before eventually being stranded. Carter Shands started on the mound and held the Kangaroos at bay defensively. In the third inning, Adrian Guzman stole third base and a bad throw by the Weatherford catcher allowed him to score.

Shands put Weatherford down in order in the bottom of the inning. However the Kangaroos got on the board in the fourth inning when a pair of base hits drove home runners to give Weatherford a 2-1 lead. Aledo responded in the fifth when Hunter Rudel doubled to left field allowing Bryce McCain to score and tie the game.

Rudel moved to pitcher from third base in the bottom of the fifth inning and made quick work of Weatherford, striking out two batters and not allowing a baserunner. The game remained tied until the seventh inning when Max Belyeu hit the first home run of the season to give Aledo a 3-2 lead. Unfortunately, in the bottom of the inning a throwing error allowed a Kangaroo player to score and tie the game. After a walk, the final Weatherford batter hit a walk-off single to seal the win 4-3 for the Kangaroos.

The second game had just as much intensity as the first. This time, the scoring started early as a two-run double gave Weatherford an early advantage in the first inning. The Bearcats got on the board in the third inning on a ground out by Estevan Flores that drove in Trace Mazon. The Kangaroos had a response, though, and added another run in the third inning, making it a 3-1 Weatherford advantage.

Aledo again closed the gap when Ryan Jones crossed the plate on a wild pitch. However Weatherford responded again, keeping it a two-run game after four innings. After three walks to start the fifth inning,Caden Pulido singled up the middle to bring Guzman home and Belyeu scored on an error by the first baseman to tie the game at four. The next batter, Bosten Dwinell, reached first on an error by the shortstop that allowed Flores and Pulido to score, giving the Bearcats a 6-4 lead.

Weatherford retook the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning, with three runs of their own and never looked back, holding off the Bearcats in the final two innings to win 7-6.

Aledo starts the baseball season with a record of 0-2 and will compete in the DFW CLASH Tourney across North Texas this weekend.