Cimarron-Memorial trips Bonanza in prep baseball, 5-2

Cimarron-Memorial’s Mike Overland might not seem like the most likely candidate to make a spectacular defensive play.

But the 6-foot-4-inch, 300-pound offensive lineman turned first baseman did just that Tuesday.

Overland made a diving stop of a grounder hit to his right, hopped to his feet and dived to the bag to beat the runner and end a sixth-inning threat to help the Spartans escape with a 5-2 road win over Bonanza.

“He’s not a trapeze artist, but he gets the job done,” Cimarron coach Mike Hubel said. “He’s as mobile as he can be, and he does a good job for us over there.

“He moves good for a big boy.”

Overland’s play came with two runners on and ended Bonanza’s two-run rally. Both runs were unearned, and that was all Cimarron pitchers Zach Culver and Elie Kligman would allow.

Culver got the win after giving up two hits and striking out eight in 5⅓ innings.

“The bottom line with him is he’s a shortstop,” Hubel said. “We’ve kind of made him a pitcher because of what we have, and he’s done a good job for us. He throws well, he’s got good pitches and he’s got good command of his fastball.”

The Spartans (6-3, 1-1 Mountain League) broke a scoreless tie with four runs in the fourth inning. Ricardo Garcia and Jackson Folkman had RBI singles to key the inning.

“Any win is big for us right now just to get these kids confidence and getting them to understand how to play properly,” Hubel said. “They’re learning. They’ve got a lot to learn, and I shove it down their throats every day as much as I can. All that matters right now is that we compete and get better.”

Bonanza starter Julian DeLeon allowed two earned runs on six hits in six innings. He struck out eight and walked five for the Bengals (3-7, 1-2).

Contact prep sports editor Damon Seiters at dseiters@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4597. Follow @DamonSeiters on Twitter.