Montezuma-Cortez baseball continues to announce its presence as a consistent force across the Four Corners, and earned a haul of all-league selections to cement its status as consistent league contender.
A second .500 season in the past four years, to go along with a runner-up spot in the 3A Intermountain League, placed six Panthers on the All-IML team. Head coach Tim Passell was also recognized by his peers, was selected as the league’s head coach of the year.
Montezuma-Cortez (8-8, 5-3 3A Intermountain League) posted a return trip to the 3A regional tournament, where the Panthers wrapped up their campaign in a loss to Delta. A strong run through league play, however, helped propel the Panthers to the postseason for the third time in four years under Passell’s tenure.
Senior hurler Ernesto Padilla helped pave the way for the Panthers, leading the M-CHS pitching staff with 48 strikeouts, and manned centerfield when he wasn’t on the mound. His consistent role at the front of the Panthers rotation earned him an all-conference first team selection.
Padilla joined classmate Ty Blackmer, the Valley City State University commit, on the all-league first team. Blackmer was a model of consistency from his shortstop position, pacing the team in hits, RBIs and on-base percentage. He also took to the mound for over 26 innings of work, leading the team with over 1½ strikeouts per inning.
Senior Dylan Kibel also made the first team, playing effective defense from the left side of the infield, while pacing the Panthers with runs scored and extra-base hits. Kibel, also bound for Valley City State, also led the league with 23 stolen bases on the campaign.
Emerging as a rising star in the 3A IML, sophomore catcher Braden Hallman proved to be a menace at the plate and steady as a receiver for Panther pitching. Hallman collected a team-high nine doubles on the season en route to a first team nod, as well.
Sophomore second baseman Evan LaMunyon joined junior Trinidad McDonell on the honorable mention team, thanks in part to LaMunyon’s steady defense, with a .944 fielding percentage. McDonell, meanwhile, collected five saves in relief for the Panthers, while also posting a team-best opposing batting average of .257 during his time on the mound.
Passell’s guidance to the program’s best years in well over a decade earned him the recognition among his peers, named as the IML head coach of the year. In an email to The Journal, Passell credited his players and staff for the honor.
“I’m honored to have been chosen by my peers,” said Passell, “but it wouldn’t have been possible without my assistant coaches, Brett Likes and Jason Hernandez. They’ve been essential to the program success over the past four years.”
Meanwhile, the Panthers boast a strong returning core of players, including rising juniors Jake Blackmer and Jeremy Ozment, along with freshman standout Miles Frost.
“We know that we’re going to need to fill some holes left by our talented seniors, including Dordt University commit Korie Likes,” added Passell, “but we have a strong group of underclassmen and incoming freshmen eager to take on that challenge.”
