When Dove Creek High School’s Jordan Ernst took the mound against Primero High School on May 1, he didn’t dream that he’d throw a perfect game, much less strike out every batter.
Relying on a blazing fastball and pinpoint control, the left–handed junior did exactly that, sitting down all 15 batters that he faced during his team’s 21–0 victory in the Class 1A District 1 Tournament in Pagosa Springs.
“Throughout the game, I didn’t really know what was going on,” said Ernst, who is now 7–1 on the season with a 3.99 ERA. “I kind of knew that I had a no-hitter, but I didn’t really think about it. When the game was finally over, it was kind of special.”
Dove Creek jumped ahead 2-0 in the bottom of the first inning and expanded its lead to 21-0 after an 8-run fourth inning that included a long home run by first-baseman Spencer Gatlin.
Even with the Bulldogs offensive explosion however, fans and teammates remained focused on Ernst, who relied primarily on his two–seem fastball to complete his historic achievement.
“I felt the best that I felt all year,” he said. “My two-seam fastball was moving quite a bit, so I only threw a couple of curves. In the last inning, my catcher, Alex Ogas, had to calm me down because I was throwing so hard.”
As for where Ernst’s achievement ranks in Colorado baseball history, the Cortez Journal could find no record of a pitcher striking out every batter during a perfect game.
“I’ve never seen it before, and I’ve been around baseball a long time,” Dove Creek manager Curtis Garver said. “It was a pretty amazing feet. I’m not sure that my team knew what was going on until I told them during the middle innings.”
As for where the game ranked among Ernst’s high school memories, the junior, who also quarterbacks for the Dove Creek football team and plays point guard for the Dove Creek basketball team, said that it was second to none.
“You always talk about throwing a perfect game and striking out every batter when you are messing around with your friends, but you never think that you’ll actually do it, Ernst said. “Baseball is my favorite sport, and for something like to happen was awesome.”
Soon after the completion of Ernst’s perfect game, Dove Creek returned to action for the District Championship game against Nucla and lost 10-4.
Dove Creek jumped ahead 3-0 after the first inning before Nucla scored eight runs off starting Bulldogs pitcher Colin Hobbs before the start of the fifth inning.
Ernst returned to the mound with no outs in the top of the fourth inning and allowed two earned runs over the remainder of the contest. Dove Creek’s bats never got going, however.
“I kept trying to get our guys to get back into that killer mindset, but it was tough,” Garver said. “We saw a little better pitcher, and Nucla played a really good defensive game. We hit the ball at them, but they didn’t make a lot of mistakes.”
Next up for the Bulldogs will be the opening game of the Class 1A Regional Tournament in Lakewood on May 9.
Dove Creek will match up against Holly (10–4) in the first round, and with a win, will advance to a state semifinals game against Community Christian or Peetz later in the day.
“I don’t know much about (Holly),” Garver said. “We’ve seen them play before, but we’ve never played them. They have a good record, but sometimes records can be deceiving.”
“Our team is pretty confident and we’re just going to play our game,” said Ernst. “I’m not going to expect myself to be able to strike everyone out again. I’m just going to go in and play my game like I have all year.”