Rams, Storm play in APS Metro baseball semis Friday at 3:30

The Rams watch from their dugout as catcher Jordan Sena tags an Eagle trying to score, but nailed by a perfect throw from centerfielder Casen Savage in the second inning Wednesday afternoon. (Photo by Joe Grimando)

La Cueva, Sandia, Rio Rancho and Cleveland will play in the 3:30 p.m. semifinals Friday of the Albuquerque Metro Baseball Championships after those four won games in the quarterfinals Wednesday afternoon.

The top-seeded Bears will host No. 5 Cleveland, and No. 2 Sandia welcomes No. 3 Rio Rancho. Interestingly, the last time the Rams visited Sandia, back on March 7, 2020, it was the final game of that season; the pandemic shut down high school sports, and the Rams, who beat the Matadors that day 7-0, didn’t play again until April 10, 2021.

At Volcano Vista Wednesday afternoon, the Storm (10-1) edged Volcano Vista 4-3, scoring three runs in the first inning and holding off the fourth-seeded Hawks (10-2) late behind the strong starting pitching performance of New Mexico State signee Jaden Davis.

Josiah Armijo’s two-RBI single highlighted Cleveland’s first-inning rally. The Hawks also walked home a run.

Leading 3-1 in the third, Anthony Del Angel’s RBI triple to right-center made the lead 4-1 for Cleveland.

The Hawks scored twice in the bottom half of the third, with Alijah Gonzales and Antonio Martinez hitting RBI singles.

Davis retired the final six batters he faced on Wednesday in the matchup of district

rivals. He gave up five hits and struck out eight in his complete game.

At Rio Rancho, the Rams won 9-3 and never trailed, but after scoring three runs on just two hits in the first inning, they didn’t get their next hit until the fifth.

After the Eagles (5-2) scored two runs in the sixth, it was a 4-3 lead.

No problem: The offense came alive in the Rams’ half of the sixth — five runs on five hits — and the third-seeded Rams were back in the Metro semifinals; they were the Metro champs, as well as the 5A state champs in 2023.

Catcher Jordan Sena sparked the Rams, going 2 for 4 with three RBIs: Sean Vigil supplied a two-run single in the sixth.

Dylan Archuleta gave up seven hits through the first five innings and earned the win. Reliever Adan Bustos gave up three runs in a third of an inning, but Casen Savage dug him out of a big hole in the sixth, and Alex Gallegos worked the scoreless seventh.

No. 1 seed La Cueva had its second shutout of the tournament, 6-0 over visiting ninth-seeded St. Pius.

Braiden Reynolds (3-0) pitched a complete-game two-hitter for the Bears (8-1), walking two and striking out five. La Cueva put up four runs in the second inning, and recorded four doubles in that inning.

Catcher Luke Reiter’s RBI double scored Brayden Likar, who had earlier doubled. Jackson Hix’s double scored a courtesy runner for Reiter. Reynolds scored two runs on a flair double to right that scored two runs.

At Sandia, Adriel Figueroa-Brito and Levi Brooks combined to shut down the Cibola offense in a 6-1 victory for the Matadors (6-1) over the sixth-seeded Cougars.