Chaparral goes 4-0 to win Cowboy Classic baseball tournament

Chaparral senior baseball player James Cobian isn’t sure how he’ll spend the rest of spring break.

It’s off to a good start, though, after he helped his team win the Cowboy Classic.

The Cowboys picked up victories over Western and Valley on Saturday, then beat Clark on Monday to clinch a home showdown Tuesday with Tech, which they outlasted 4-2 in the tournament title game.

Cobian started and struck out seven in three innings against the Roadrunners before shifting to shortstop. He went 1-for-4 with a double and finished the four-game tournament 6-for-16 with three RBIs.

Chaparral coach David Soto reminded his players after the game that he has his sights set on a state championship — not a midseason tournament title — but was pleased with how his team reeled off the four wins.

“It’s not that we’re doing anything spectacular,” Soto said. “It’s just that when we need to put the ball in play, it gets put in play. When we need a walk or a hit by pitch, everything is just clicking.”

Cobian pounded the strike zone and flustered Tech (9-3) for the better part of his outing, but he surrendered a sacrifice fly and subsequent unearned run in the second inning.

The Cowboys (13-1) also struggled to hit in the first three innings, but manufactured three runs in the fourth inning via walks and errors.

Robert O’Connor had an RBI triple and Christian Calzada added an RBI single.

Rodney Elosegui walked with the bases loaded in the sixth inning for Chaparral to provide the crucial insurance run, and Cowboys reliever Cannon Greene allowed one run in four innings to secure the championship.

“The rest of the spring break is probably going to be with the boys,” Cobian said with a smile.

Contact reporter Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on Twitter.