Chinle pulls away late for 6-2 road win over Miyamura

Chinle’s fifth straight road victory looked less like a good April result and more like a team learning how to win when the games tighten. The Wildcats broke a tie late and left Gallup with a 6-2 win over Miyamura High School on Saturday, a performance that strengthens the case that Chinle is becoming a real threat in 3A North.

The difference came from the mound. Seniors Covington Jones and Hage Tsosie combined to limit the Patriots to three hits and two runs, giving Chinle the steady pitching it needed as the game settled in. That kind of work matters in late-season baseball in Apache County, where teams chasing a regional seed or a tournament push need more than one explosive inning.

Chinle scored first in the second inning, then waited until the final two frames to break the game open with four runs. Miyamura kept cycling through pitchers trying to stop the damage, but Chinle kept adding pressure and never let the home team settle back in. That late surge turned a close road game into a convincing finish, the kind that can carry weight when playoff brackets start to matter.

The result pushed Chinle to 12-3 in MaxPreps’ listing after the game, while AZPreps365 showed the Wildcats at 14-3 overall and 5-1 in 3A North play as of April 8 under head coach Charles Kimbrough. Chinle also entered the week riding a strong road stretch, and the next games should tell more about how serious this team is: a visit to Window Rock followed by the 3A North Tournament April 23-25. For families following spring sports across Apache County, those dates could reveal whether Chinle’s early-season surge is just hot streak or something built to last.

Miyamura fell to 8-8 after losing to Chinle, just two days after a 19-18 loss to Aztec. The Patriots had beaten Chinle 12-9 in April 2025, which made Saturday’s result another reminder that this matchup has been close and competitive. This time, Chinle finished it stronger, and that is often what separates a contender from a team simply passing through the schedule.