PRESCOTT — After getting hit hard in game one against the rival Bears last month, Prescott righty Adrian Sanderford twirled a gem the second time around, throwing a complete game shutout in a 10-0 rout Tuesday afternoon.

It is the seventh win in the past eight games for No. 11-ranked Prescott (14-5, 9-2 4A Grand Canyon), which remains undefeated at home this season (5-0) while outscoring their opponents 52-23 in that timeframe.

Skipper Jason Hutchens said his star senior “mixed his pitches well” and “lived in the zone” much of the afternoon on the mound.

“He does well when we slow him down. He tends to get amped up and go fast. A couple of those mistakes on the mound were because he was rushing,” the first-year coach said. “When he slows down, he does his thing. He’s been solid all year and I expect more in the playoffs.”

Sanderford threw six innings, allowed only two hits and struck out two on 68 pitches without a walk. The senior did not need to take the bump in the seventh after teammate Ashton Whitwell recorded a two-RBI base hit in the bottom half of the sixth to 10-run rule the Bears.

“I pitched against them last time, and they put some balls in play. I wanted to throw strikes and let my defense go to work. And that’s what happened, the defense played great,” Sanderford said about his effort Tuesday. “I was working my fastball, slider and my curveball kind of worked, it struggled a bit. But when I needed to, I got it down.”

Prescott came out swinging in the bottom of the first as Cooper Magnet roped a two-RBI double down the left field line, then Colton Champion singled to right to bring him in and it was quickly 3-0 Badgers.

Magnet was 2 for 4 with a double and two RBIs, while champion had a double and a pair of RBIs as well against the No. 8-ranked Bears.

In the top of the fourth inning, Sanderford had runners on first and second with no outs and managed to wiggle his way off the hook to keep the score 3-0 at the time.

In the next inning, the righty was in trouble again, this time he had to pitch around a hit batter and an error, but pulled a Houdini act once again, recording a strikeout to end the frame.

“He told me to trust my stuff, and that these guys aren’t better than me,” Sanderford said about a mound visit from the pitching coach in the fourth. “They aren’t better hitters than I am a pitcher, so just trust my stuff.”

After Sanderford shut down Bradshaw Mountain in the sixth, the flood gates opened for the Badgers as they plated seven runs, including the walk-off single by Whitwell, who had no idea his hit was a game winner by the look on his face.

“I had no idea. No idea,” Whitwell said with a laugh. “I just wanted to hit the ball. It was exciting, I haven’t been hitting the greatest this season, but maybe it will be a turning point. Maybe it will put me in a better spot in future games.”

Whitwell was 1 for 4 with a run scored and two RBIs.

Bradshaw Mountain starter Jeremy Reynolds didn’t have his best stuff Tuesday, managing only two innings pitched while allowing three runs on four hits after throwing 42 pitches.

Bears coach Brian Bundrick called in Dylan Lockwood to relieve Reynolds and was solid for three innings before losing his control in the sixth, walking five batters and allowing five earned runs on two hits.

Offensively, only Lockwood and Caden Randall managed a hit. The rest of the team was 0 for 16 at the plate.

UP NEXT

Bradshaw Mountain (17-5, 8-2 4A Grand Canyon) is currently a half game behind the Badgers for the region lead, and have a doubleheader against Lee Williams on April 26 to end the regular season.

Prescott has one more contest at home against Mingus on April 23, then they travel to ALA-Gilbert North on April 26 and host Crismon on April 28 to end the regular season.

There are a few scenarios on what team could claim the Grand Canyon region crown.

If Prescott beats Mingus, they’d be 10-2 overall and it would force Bradshaw Mountain to sweep the doubleheader against Lee Williams to force a tie atop the region.

If Mingus defeats the Badgers, making them 9-3, the Bears would need to win both games against Lee Williams to earn the region title outright. If they split, they could both be tied.

Since the two teams split, conference record winning percentage would be the tiebreaker. Currently the Badgers have a .867 winning percentage in conference, while Bradshaw Mountain has a .786.

A few other scenarios could play out, but the region champion should come down to Prescott or Bradshaw Mountain since Flagstaff has only one more region game against Coconino. The Eagles lost both to Bradshaw Mountain this season and split with Prescott.

Brian M. Bergner Jr. has covered professional, collegiate and high school sports for more than 20 years. Follow him on X at @AzPreps365Brian or on Facebook at @Five2MediaWorks. Have a story idea? Email Brian at bbergner@azpreps365.com.