ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (KTSM) — A day after completing a comeback victory against Carlsbad in the NMAA Class 5A quarterfinals, Centennial proceeded to dominate Sandia for an 11-1 win in five innings in the semifinals on Friday.
With the win, the Hawks are set to play in the 5A state championship game on Saturday.
Centennial will face off against No. 1 seed Rio Rancho in the state championship game at the Santa Ana Star Field at the University of New Mexico. This will be the first meeting of the season between the two programs.
Centennial will aim to win its second baseball state championship in program history. In 2016, Centennial, under current head coach Rusty Evans, beat Goddard, 5-4, to win state.
Centennial (26-4, 13-2 District 3-5A) and Rio Rancho (25-2-2, 7-1 District 1-5A) will play for the state title on Saturday at Santa Ana Star Field at the University of New Mexico on Saturday. First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m. MT.
In Class A, Mesilla Valley Christian suffered a 14-4 loss to Logan in the semifinals round of the tournament.
Softball
Centennial softball started its Friday with 2-1 loss to Carlsbad in the third round of the 5A championship bracket. Centennial was handed its first loss of the 2023 season.
The Hawks were bumped down to the Consolation bracket but still had a chance to play its way back to the state championship game. In round four of the consolation bracket, Centennial faced off against Piedra Vista, the same team the Hawks beat on Thursday.
This time around, Piedra Vista claimed revenge and grabbed a 4-2 win over Centennial.
Centennial ends its 2023 season with a 29-2 overall record.
