NoCo's Momentum Carries to Create Saturday's Sound Showing

GREELEY, Colo. -- A timely offensive attack turned the Saturday's tide toward the Owlz, and their second-straight win comes courtesy of some of the same heroes from Friday.

In fact, Saturday started the exact same way Friday ended: with a Liam Scafariello homer.

While his knockout round round-tripper couldn't count in the scorebook, the one Scafariello scalded to start Saturday very much counted. And to count just how many feet that two-run touch-em-all traveled, you'd have needed a tape measure.

Grand Junction's (10-11) Jaylen Hubbard hammered a homer of his own, cutting his club's deficit in half a half inning later. But the Owlz offered a response right away. Jordan Garr slipped a single into right field that scored Marshall Rich and returned NoCo (10-11) to a two-run lead at the end of the second inning.

Across the next four frames, though, the Owlz only saw two batters reach base. Grand Junction's Izzy Fuentes (L, 0-3) fired off an efficient few innings, at one point retiring eight in a row. The righty really threw off NoCo's mojo during the heart of this heated contest.

At the same time the Owlz offense slowed to a standstill, Kida De La Cruz cruised. The starter showed a short memory after a forgettable first performance with NoCo, this time lasting five innings and fanning four Rockies hitters.

By the time Austin Schneider relieved him, De La Cruz had surrendered two earned runs. Schneider saw the Grand Junction order all the way through one time, facing nine batters and allowing one earned run that tied the game up in the seventh inning.

That's the same inning the Owlz ignited their offense again. And Garr was the key to that ignition. After Rich ran out a bunt single and Zach West whacked a double, the nine-hole hitter hacked his own double that scored both of them. Garr got over to third on a passed ball, and when Cameron Phelts lofted a sac fly into left field, Garr got another run on the board.

So not only did that seventh inning supply him with three RBI on the game, his personal best this season, it supplied his squad with the lead it needed to take consecutive games from Grand Junction.

Chance Benton (W, 1-0), who spelled Schneider in the seventh, combined with Gaylan Young (S, 2), Friday's folk hero, to close it out on the mound.

Benton allowed an earned run in the eighth, but a great defensive play from Brian Dansereau prevented a potential second run from coming in.

After Dansereau's diving catch in right field, the Rockies' Charles Middleton made a mistake. I guess Middleton never thought the right fielder would whip an on-target throw to third base that quickly, but that's exactly what Dansereau did. When Middleton tagged and rounded the bag - again, not considering the consequence - Garr received the throw, put a tag on him, and ended the final threat Grand Junction mustered in this matchup.

It was one of many meaningful defensive plays the Owlz made on Saturday. Dansereau darted all over right field to make six putouts, including three of the final four outs in the game. Alex Jackson made a diving catch from his post in left field. Behind the dish, Rich caught a man stealing after corralling a would-be-wild pitch in that decisive seventh inning.

All in all, Saturday's sound 6-4 dub over a division rival gives these guys a shot at splitting this series on Sunday.

First pitch for that game is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. from Jackson Field. We'll see you then!