A three-run home run, and an abundance of solid pitching and defense — in short, the Earl Weaver trifecta — carried La Cueva past Volcano Vista 4-2 on Thursday afternoon in the semifinals of the Albuquerque Public Schools Metro Baseball Championship.

Connor Calvert’s three-run, opposite-field homer hit the foul pole in the top of the first, and that was all the third-seeded Bears (5-1) needed to advance to Saturday’s 10 a.m. championship game against No. 4 seed Rio Rancho (10-1). La Cueva will host.

“Our pitching and our defense saved us for sure,” Bears coach Gerard Pineda said.

Tanner Wade and Alex Howard opened with singles off Volcano Vista starter and loser Brian Fox (1-3). Calvert took a meaty fastball the other way, and a healthy wind carried it until it hit the right-field pole.

Bears pitchers Trey Alexanderson and Chad Smith, both juniors, took care of the rest.

Smith, in particular, made two clutch pitches against the Hawks’ top player, Andre Vigil, getting him to fly out with two runners aboard in the bottom of the fifth and again to end the game.

“Chad made pitches in crucial situations,” Pineda said, “against the best hitter in the state.”

The top two seeds, Sandia (6-1) and Volcano Vista, meet for third place Saturday.

The visiting Rams beat the Matadors 7-4 in the other semi Thursday. Sandia (6-1) was the last remaining unbeaten team in 5A.

Brandon Garcia, Evan Offutt and Marcus Martinez all homered for Rio Rancho.

For Offutt, the Rams’ left-handed-hitting designated hitter, it was his fourth home run in the past six days. Against St. Pius last Saturday, he had two homers and 10 RBIs in an 18-1 victory in the championship game of a tournament in Las Cruces.

Metro softball

The APS Metro Championship begins today at Bullhead Park. Two-time defending Class 5A state champ Volcano Vista is the No. 1 seed, followed by Cibola, La Cueva and Rio Rancho.

There are four first-round games at 9 a.m.: No. 8 Valley versus No. 9 Eldorado, No. 5 Atrisco Heritage against No. 12 Del Norte, No. 6 Cleveland and No. 11 Sandia, and No. 7 Albuquerque High and No. 10 St. Pius.

At 11 a.m., it’s the Hawks taking on 16th-seeded Highland, the Cougars meeting 15th-seeded Manzano, the Bears facing 14th-seeded Rio Grande, and the Rams playing 13th-seeded West Mesa.

The final is 3 p.m. Saturday.
— This article appeared on page D6 of the Albuquerque Journal