La Cueva softball dominates Cibola 24-4 to win third-straight metro title

If winning the metro tournament was “goal number one,” La Cueva softball accomplished it in utterly dominant fashion.

The second-seeded Bears run-ruled No. 1 Cibola 24-4 over five innings in the metro tournament final Saturday, clinching their third-straight metro title with perhaps the team’s finest offensive effort of the season.

“That’s our first goal every year, (it’s) metros,” La Cueva coach Ron Romero told the Journal on Saturday. “And then we look towards districts after this. (But) this was goal number one. I’m glad we got it.”

In smashing Cibola, La Cueva avenged a 7-5 loss to the Cougars on March 1. Romero said his team was looking forward to potentially playing Cibola in the Saturday’s final “since the brackets came out” and played like it from the jump.

Romero said the Cougars caught the Bears “on a bad day” in their first matchup.

“I’ll give them credit, tip my hat to them,” he said. “But today was the day we were ready for it, and we wanted to make a statement today.”

Cibola head coach LaRae Melvin said her team came into the rematch “almost defeated,” and unsure if they could win again.

“I told them just now, it was not the same nine that I saw today that I saw in early March,” Melvin said.

Playing at Cibola, the Bears (8-3) overwhelmed the previously undefeated Cougars (10-1) with 16 hits, two of which were home runs.

The first, a three-run shot from Lili Montoya in the top of the second, was the biggest blow in an early run that saw La Cueva bat through on its way to a commanding 9-0 lead.

Montoya also pitched a complete game, allowing four runs on five hits with four strikeouts. Cibola had not been held to less than five runs in a game since a season-opening 3-0 win over Albuquerque High on Feb. 27.

“That’s the senior pitcher right there,” Romero said admiringly. “Everything she’s done for this season has just shown up — (she’s) a great senior leader.”

A solo home run from Presley Peek-Ruscetti got the Cougars on the board in the bottom of the second, but La Cueva didn’t wait long to answer. Bears catcher Brooklyn Eardley ripped a three-run single up the middle to fuel a five-run third inning, one that ended with Cibola trailing 14-1.

Cougars second baseman Ava Benavidez’s two-out double plated two runs in the fourth, inching Cibola to a 15-4 deficit. But the Bears got the final word, dropping a nine-run fifth inning to go ahead by 20 runs and leave the Cougars feeling that they might’ve beat themselves.

“When you have seven errors and you see our energy on the field kind of deflate, I think our biggest opponent was ourselves,” Melvin said. “ … It’s really hard to stay in a game like that. But I’m proud of my girls — they worked hard all week (with) four games in four days.”

For the Bears, the feeling is everybody showed up.

“All our sticks are hot … it’s hard to pick and choose,” Romero chuckled.

Metro softball championship — La Cueva vs. Cibola: Photos