Delta baseball finishes regular season strong

All three pitchers were once again in the middle of the action on Thursday during a 10-5 victory over geographic rival Montrose. Landan Clay and Donavan Raley even got in on the peak pitching performances during a 33-0 drubbing of Olathe on Tuesday.

It was a spectacular week for the Panthers are the perfect time for coach Steve Reiher.

“We’ve cleaned up our defense—knock on wood, of course—and we’ve been swinging it well against a variety of pitchers,” he said. “We’ve been pitching it really well, too, so it feels like we’re in a good place for the postseason.”

Delta will finish second in the Class 3A Western Slope League behind undefeated Coal Ridge, but with an 18-5 record and numerous wins over quality opponents, the Panthers will likely be in good shape when 3A regional pairs are released later this week.

Beyond the strong pitching performances, the Panthers also featured some big hitting last week. The win over Olathe saw 16 players take an at-bat and 11 finish with at least one hit. Reed, Eban Ficklin, Joe Black and Jacob Hancock all launched home runs. Against Montrose, Clay, Reed, Kennell and Konner Workman all clubbed doubles. The doubleheader sweep of Basalt included big performances from Rylan Bynum and Luke Gastineau. 

It all adds up to peaking at the right time, Reiher said.

“We’ve had good approaches at the plate,” the coach said. “Even when we’re hitting balls right at people, we’re making good contact and hitting it hard. That’s what we preach and we’re taking care of the little things we need to put ourselves in the best position possible.”