An early outburst of offense from the Vista Ridge Rangers hurt the Hays Rebels in a 9-3 loss Friday at home.

The loss places Hays (14-9, 6-7) in a three-way tie with Westlake and Vandegrift for the final two playoff spots with a week left in the regular season.

Aidan Martinez took the mound for the Rebels to start the game. The visiting Rangers were able to get to him early, scoring a run on two hits in the opening inning.

Hays answered in the bottom of the second inning when Chase Ruston led off w...