Cavemen Entertain Cibola in State Tourney Opener

By Don Eskins

It’s been a long and winding road for the Carlsbad Cavemen baseball team this season. But, through it all, they’ve met and dealt with just about all the challenges their 2025 schedule brought them.

However, now the Cavemen have a new challenge, a challenge they’ve been preparing for since opening the season at the Cleveland Invitational on February 27.

On Friday, May 9, Carlsbad High will entertain the Cibola Cougars in the first round of the Class 5A state tournament. It will be the first step in their effort to bring back another state championship to the Cavern City.

CHS will host Cibola in a best-of-three series. Game one of the series is set for 6 p.m. on Friday, May 9. Game two will take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 10. Should a game three be necessary, it will get underway at 1 p.m. on Saturday. All games will be played at the Tom Forni Cavemen Corral.

The Cavemen, 21-5 on the year and ranked third in Class 5A baseball, have been seeded third for this year’s state tournament. The Cougars, 15-11 overall and ranked 10th among Class 5A teams, have been seeded 14th.

But, despite Cibola’s 14th seed, Caveman head coach Mike McGaha won’t be letting his Cavemen look past the Cougars.

Cavemen vs. Cibola Matchup

“This is a very different kind of year,” said McGaha. “On any given day, all one through 16 seeds are capable of beating anybody.”

That’s especially true for the Cibola Cougars, said the Caveman coach.

“Cibola has posted some really big wins this year. They beat Rio Rancho, Piedra Vista, Farmington, and Los Lunas. I was really surprised that they were seeded as low as 14,” said McGaha. “Some of their losses this season have been due to a lack of depth on their pitching staff. But they’re a very talented team and have a few collegiate signees on their roster. So, I’d say we’re in for a real battle.”

As for the Cavemen, they’ll be hoping to follow CHS’s standard procedure when they take the field against Cibola.

“We have to make the routine plays, pay attention to detail, and be both physically and mentally sharp. Mental mistakes are unacceptable and can get you beat,” said the Caveman coach. “We don’t have to be perfect, but when we make a mistake, we need to minimize the damage, not compound it.”

“Overall, our kids have fought hard, competed well, and grown a lot this season. And for their efforts, our coaching staff and I are very proud of them,” he said. “If we execute, both offensively and defensively against the Cougars, I think our kids will be in good shape.”

With 30 RBIs, four home runs, and a .412 batting average, Garrett Fuentes led all CHS hitters this season.

Aden Quintela, 8-0 on the year with an ERA of 1.367, and Jonas Molinar, 8-0 with one save and an ERA of 2.133, paced the CHS pitching staff.

With a victory over Cibola, the Cavemen would move on to the quarter-final round of the state tournament, where they’d face off with the winner of the sixth-seeded Sandia Matadors vs. the 11th-seeded Piedra Vista Panthers. The game would take place on Thursday, May 15, in Albuquerque, at 1 p.m.

The state tournament will run through Saturday, May 17.

Cavemen 2025 Leaders

Defensive Setup: 1. Catchers, Jaden Carter and Connor Roberson; First Base, Auggie Venegas when Jonas Molinar pitches/Jonas Molinar when Aden Quintela pitches; Second Base, Aden Quintela when Jonas Molinar pitches/Anthony Hernandez when Aden Quintela pitches; Shortstop, Eloy Lopez; Third Base, Wade Cozart; Left Field, Gus Risher; Center Field, Garrett Fuentes; Right Field, Ritchie Herrera; DH, Tanner Collins.

Batting Leaders: 1. Garrett Fuentes, .412; 2. Eloy Lopez, .380; 3. E. Lopez, .375; 4. R. Herrera, .367; 5. Aden Quintela, .358; 6. Wade Cozart, .344; 7. Gus Risher, .312; 8. Tanner Collins, .310; 9. Jonas Molinar, .290; 10. J. Carter, .268; and 11. Connor Roberson, 250.

Home Runs: Garrett Fuentes and Jonas Molinar, four each; Connor Roberson and Tanner Collins, two each. RBIs: Garrett Fuentes, 30; Aden Quintela and Gus Risher, 21; Jonas Molinar, 17; Tanner Collins, 15; and Eloy Lopez and W. Cozart, 13.

Pitching Staff: 1. Aden Quintela, 8-0, ERA 1.367; 2. Jonas Molinar, 8-0-1 (SV), ERA 2.133; 3. Eloy Lopez, 3-1, ERA 2.571; 4. W. Cozart, 1-0-1 (SV), ERA .840; and 5. M. Espinda, 1-0, ERA- .000.