BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER
MISSION — Friday night, under the lights, it was a heavyweight title fight.
Mission Veterans and Valley View each sent top pitchers to the mound. Veterans handed the ball to senior southpaw Noel Vela, while the Tigers countered with senior Chezzarre Gonzalez. The teams traded blows throughout, as only five half-innings didn’t result in a run scored for either team.
The Patriots came away with a 9-5 victory over the Tigers in the District 31-5A matchup. With the win, the Patriots are tied with the Tigers at the top of the standings with matching 7-1 district records.
“It’s exactly what we needed going into the second half of district,” Veterans senior Eddie Galvan said. “It was a big one. We still had the bad taste in our mouth from the Rio (loss). Huge win by the team, by everyone. It gets us going for the next game.”
Valley View scored first, plating two in the top of the second. Mission Veterans responded right away, scoring three in the home half of the second.
Vela came out firing in the third, striking out the first batter and working around a bunt single to turn in a scoreless frame.
“I was fired up. Getting the lead back got my confidence back up,” Vela said. “I just wanted to do my best to keep the lead.”
The Patriots saw their opening and added an insurance run in the third. Valley View would never catch up after that.
The Valley View bats gave Vela headaches, but he always avoided the big inning and got the outs when his team needed them most.
“That’s Noel, that’s his MO,” Veterans coach Casey Smith said. “He’ll get in some trouble, he’ll have some guys on, but he always does a good job of battling out of it. He got us through 5 1/3 and got it to Cris so we could get it over with.”
Valley View got as close as 6-5 in the fifth inning, but Smith made the call to turn to senior Cristian Ramos in the sixth. He kept the Tigers off the board.
That scoreless frame was huge for the Patriots, because the next inning, Gonzalez had to be pulled, and the Tigers couldn’t find a reliever.
Valley View started the sixth with junior Ricardo Sanchez on the mound. Eleven of his 12 pitches were balls, forcing Valley View coach Mario Gonzalez to make a switch. He put senior Rogelio Arratia on the mound to try to slow the Patriots. It was too late, though, as Veterans smelled blood in the water and went in for the knockout. Back-to-back-to-back hits from Galvan, junior Ricardo Llanas and senior Jacob Guerrero gave Mission Veterans a 9-5 lead.
“I was trying not to think too big,” Galvan, who went 3 for 4 with a double, run scored and an RBI, said. “Usually, when the wind is blowing out, I think, ‘Oh man, I want to hit a home run,’ But today, I toned it down and I said if its not your pitch, hit it up the middle. And it worked. I made good contact and got the job done.”
Ramos cleaned up with a scoreless seventh, and the Patriots got a huge win.
“Cristian did what he has done all year long, his whole career — he came in and threw strikes,” Smith said. “He’s going to come in and fill up that zone. The guy doesn’t walk anybody. He gives you a chance to make plays behind him.”
The excitement was there from both teams throughout. Just like a big fight, the crowd was back and forth with every blow. The players fed off that excitement, and they played a game worthy of the hype.
“This is my favorite type of game,” Galvan said. “The 10-0 games, the 15-0 games, those are fun, but I think these, win or lose, they are what make baseball so fun. This is what I love about the game.”