{"id":677283,"date":"2026-04-17T00:39:46","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T00:39:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/677283\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T00:39:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T00:39:46","slug":"surging-bears-in-baseball-playoff-mix-as-season-hits-halfway-point","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/677283\/","title":{"rendered":"Surging Bears in baseball playoff mix as season hits halfway point"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Dolores junior Levi Hampton winds up for a pitch in a contest against Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/p>\n

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Dolores bats stay hot, Bears sweep Nucla to edge closer to .500<\/p>\n

DOLORES \u2013 The Dolores baseball team is carving its own path to success.<\/p>\n

When a once\u2011proud Dolores High School baseball tradition was discontinued seven years ago, the current roster\u2019s players were still in elementary school. With the departure of the program also went the role models for future Bears baseball players.<\/p>\n

When the program hit the reset button two years ago, an incoming group of underclassmen took on the task of rebuilding the black\u2011and\u2011red tradition from the ground up. Two years later, that group has grown into its role, learning lessons through an inaugural junior varsity season in 2024 and its first year back at the varsity level last spring.<\/p>\n

First\u2011year head coach Brandon Range and his staff have the Bears humming, winners of five of their last six games and squarely in the mix for one of the 2A classification\u2019s 32 playoff spots.<\/p>\n

The Bears (5\u20116) lean on a deep junior class whose confidence continues to grow with each game. Gus Vaughn serves as captain from shortstop and hits in the three\u2011hole in Range\u2019s batting order. He leads a lineup batting .360 as a team, a number that continues to climb as the Bears pile up runs.<\/p>\n

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Dolores junior Gus Vaughn rounds second base in a contest against Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/p>\n

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With 15\u20115 and 13\u201110 wins over Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park, Dolores extended its streak of scoring at least 10 runs to six straight games. After a rigorous start to the schedule, the Bears offense has taken off, and that momentum has spread throughout the lineup, according to Range.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur guys\u2019 maturity has helped them to relax and remember how to play the game,\u201d said Range. \u201cAnd when it clicked for them, they did it as a group \u2013 it wasn\u2019t just one person.\u201d<\/p>\n

Juniors Declan Warren and Levi Hampton have been anchors since stepping into starting roles as freshmen. Warren blasted the program\u2019s first home run in seven years earlier this season, while Hampton joins Vaughn at the front end of the Bears\u2019 pitching rotation.<\/p>\n

Juniors Orin Samulski and Hayden Lancaster have also been staples in the starting nine, with both showing versatility on the mound.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach of our leaders has a different personality, and those balance each other out \u2013 and that\u2019s what we need to play competitive baseball,\u201d Range said.<\/p>\n

The sophomore and freshman classes have followed the upperclassmen\u2019s lead. Branson Lee and Waylon Kiddoo from the Class of \u201928, along with first\u2011year players Isaac Samulski and Kooper Thomas, rank among the team leaders in on\u2011base percentage.<\/p>\n

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Dolores freshman Kooper Thomas applies a tag at third base in a contest against Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/p>\n

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Dolores sophomore Waylon Kiddoo follows through on a hit in a contest against Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/p>\n

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Dolores sophomore Branson Lee awaits a pitch in a contest against Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/p>\n

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Dolores junior Levi Hampton watches a teammate\u2019s hit as he rounds second in a contest against Nucla on Wednesday afternoon at Joe Rowell Park. Erika Alvero\/Special to The Journal<\/p>\n

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\u201cOur guys have learned to have high expectations for themselves and for each other, and they\u2019ve been able to keep positive energy,\u201d Range said, attributing the team\u2019s mentality to its success on the field.<\/p>\n

Aggressive early\u2011count approaches have the Bears ready to attack quality pitches, and their contact and power numbers have risen accordingly. After pulling away with a seven\u2011run sixth inning to secure a mercy\u2011rule win in the opener against the Mustangs, the Bears\u2019 offense continued to shine in the second game. Vaughn and Warren each drove in a run in the first inning to build a 2\u20110 lead, and Hampton and Lee followed with back\u2011to\u2011back RBI hits in the second to extend the margin to 5\u20111.<\/p>\n

Lancaster added an RBI sacrifice fly in the third, then Vaughn\u2019s single and Kiddoo\u2019s double drove in runs in the fourth to make it 10\u20112. Hampton\u2019s strong five\u2011inning outing kept Nucla in check before the Mustangs rallied for seven runs in the later innings to cut the deficit to one. Dolores responded with three runs in the sixth to secure the victory.<\/p>\n

Isaac Samulski went 8\u2011for\u20118 at the plate across the two games, while Thomas and Kiddoo each posted 6\u2011for\u20118 days in the doubleheader. The Bears finished with 32 hits in the sweep. Vaughn earned the complete\u2011game win in the opener, and Lancaster recorded the final six outs of game two to support Hampton\u2019s victory.<\/p>\n

The surge has propelled Dolores up the 2A standings in the CHSAA Seeding and Selection Index. The Bears enter Friday\u2019s April 17 doubleheader against Ignacio ranked No. 33 in the state. An 11\u201110 extra\u2011inning walk\u2011off win over the Bobcats on April 11 gave Dolores the season\u2011series edge and a major boost in its bid to win the San Juan Basin.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been through so much as a team,\u201d Range said. \u201cAnd that win just showed how much growth we\u2019ve made as a program.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dolores returns home Monday, April 20, for a rubber match with Dove Creek at 2 p.m. after the teams split a doubleheader April 7. The Bears also face Center on April 23 and fellow playoff contender Del Norte on April 25 in a stretch that could push them into the postseason field.<\/p>\n

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