4A state baseball: Durango star caps career with 2nd straight title
Alexander Mercurius didn’t have too many chances to make an impact in the Class 4A state baseball championship games Saturday, as Silverado intentionally walked him eight times.
But that didn’t stop Durango’s star from putting a bow on a state championship and his senior season.
Mercurius homered in his only official at-bat, then pitched the final inning, striking out two — including the final batter — as the Trailblazers beat the Skyhawks 14-9 to claim a second consecutive title.
“When I threw that last pitch, I was just filled with excitement and just ready to get after it,” Mercurius said. “Got a swing and miss, got a strikeout to end my senior year, so it was just like one of the best things I could do right there, honestly.”
Mercurius and company could have ended their day earlier, but Silverado rolled to a 9-3 win in the first game, forcing a deciding second game. The Trailblazers (27-7) wasted no time in Game 2, scoring six runs in the top of the first to take control.
“I knew I had to start something,” said senior Teagan Payne, who got the rally going with a one-out triple. “Senior, last year, I was like, ‘I’m not going to go out like that.’”
Durango sent 10 batters to the plate in the first, getting RBI singles from Ayden Perera and Jon Turner and an RBI double from Luke Desoto.
“It kind of killed their morale and their momentum,” said Durango coach Tommy Rojas, who was a member of Silverado’s 2000 state championship team. “They’re a good team over there. It makes it even more sweet because I am an alumni of Silverado where I won a state championship. So to be able to win two against them, it feels great.”
The Trailblazers batted around again in the fifth, scoring six more times to push their lead to 12-2. Turner’s two-run homer was the big blow in the inning. Perera added a two-run single, Desoto had an RBI double, and Payne had a run-scoring single for Durango.
After Silverado (21-10) scored twice in the bottom of the fifth to avoid the mercy rule, the Skyhawks finally pitched to Mercurius in the top of the sixth. He crushed a 2-0 pitch for a solo homer to lead off the inning.
Silverado had intentionally walked Mercurius in his first seven plate appearances Saturday before the homer. And after the homer, they decided to give him a free pass again in the seventh inning.
“I may have took it as frustration, yes, but honestly it’s a compliment,” said Mercurius, who has committed to play at Oklahoma. “My coaches told me I should have took it as a compliment, because it’s mad respect people are giving me right there for walking me intentionally. But I’m glad they got me that one (at-bat) so I can show my skills.”
Rojas said the plan always was to go to Mercurius in the seventh. The senior threw six shutout innings in a 4-0, 12-inning win over Silverado on Thursday.
“That kid is an unbelievable athlete, probably the best athlete I’ve ever seen on the high school level,” Rojas said. “He can do it all. He’s going to make a lot of money in this game, and I’m looking forward to see his future.”
Payne went 3-for-5, and Desoto was 3-for-4 with three doubles for Durango. Perera and Turner each went 2-for-4 with three RBIs.
Hogan Hawkins was 3-for-5 with a run and an RBI, and Gio Guariglia was 2-for-5 with two doubles and three RBIs to pace Silverado in the second game.
Hawkins was 3-for-4 with two triples, two runs and two RBIs in the opener for Silverado. Guariglia was 2-for-4 with a double, a homer and two RBIs, and Marek Piekarski and Jayden Orphan each had three hits in that game for the Skyhawks.
“You can’t describe this feeling,” Rojas said. “It’s a lot of emotion. It started back in September and the grind is long. So this feeling, it’s indescribable, but it’s almost unbelievable to go back-to-back, because it’s hard to even get one.”
