Pima Baseball Falls Short in Regional Finals Opener Against South Mountain

The Pima Community College baseball team, boasting a record of 47 wins and 12 losses, commenced their journey in the Region I, Division II Finals on Thursday at South Mountain Community College, which holds a record of 44 wins and 16 losses.

The second-seeded Aztecs faced a challenging opener against the top-seeded Cougars, suffering a 9-1 defeat in a seven-inning game. This loss places the Cougars ahead 1-0 in the best-of-three series.

After falling behind 2-0, the Aztecs finally made their mark in the third inning. Sophomore Andrew Grenert from Horizon High School reached base with a two-out single and advanced to second due to an error. Freshman Leon Cereceres then brought him home with an RBI single, narrowing South Mountain’s lead.

However, the Cougars dominated the rest of the game, scoring seven runs without reply. Pima struggled offensively, as they retired 11 out of their final 13 batters. The middle of their batting order, from third to eighth, went a combined 0 for 15.

Cereceres finished the game with a line of 1 for 2, alongside his RBI, while Grenert also recorded 1 for 2 with one run scored. Sophomore Caden Richards contributed as well, going 1 for 2 with a walk.

The Aztecs’ sophomore pitcher Nate Gray from Queen Creek High School was charged with the loss after five innings, allowing seven runs—four of which were earned—on ten hits, while striking out four and issuing one walk during 83 pitches.

Pima is set to compete in Game 2 at South Mountain Community College on Friday at 2 p.m.