BY SAUL BERRIOS-THOMAS | STAFF WRITER
LAREDO — San Antonio Churchill senior Kevin Crusius came up to bat for the first time with the game knotted at one in the top of the ninth inning as part of a double switch.
He struck out on three pitches, but the third took an awkward bounce and soared to the backstop. McAllen High junior catcher Nate Quintanilla was quick to chase it down, but Crusius just barely beat the throw to first. Churchill bunted him to second. Senior shortstop Jordan Cardenas popped out to senior second baseman Keola Zamora, and the Bulldogs seemed as if they might be able to get out of the inning.
Then, Churchill junior third baseman Sam Serchay hit a shot deep in the hole between first and second.
“I saw a line drive between first and second,” Zamora said. “I was covering the runner at second, and as soon as I saw the hit, I knew I had to dive for it in order to make the play. I just didn’t come up with it.”
Zamora smothered the ball, but it rolled just out of reach, so he had to scramble to retrieve it. He said he knew he couldn’t get the runner at first, so he fired home, but the throw was too late.
McHi couldn’t answer in the bottom of the ninth, and Churchill won Game 1 of the Class 6A Region IV semifinal series 2-1 in nine innings on Friday at Uni-Trade Stadium.
“It’s a very tough ballgame to lose,” McHi coach Eliseo Pompa said. “The kids played their hearts out. It’s a shame that someone has to lose when the game is like this, going nine innings.”
McAllen High senior starting pitcher Abanny Garcia kept his team in the game despite some struggles on the mound. He worked around base runners in every inning, except the sixth. In the top of the fourth, he gave up his lone run. Garcia was in a bases-loaded, no-out jam, but he used two strikeouts get out of the inning, limiting the damage and keeping the game tied.
He might have escaped unscathed if it hadn’t been for one awkward play. The bases were still loaded with one out when Churchill junior left fielder Andy de Leon hit ground ball right back to Garcia. Garcia made the throw home to retire the lead runner. Quintanilla then threw to first base, but de Leon ran into senior first baseman Enrique Rodriguez, sending the ball rolling past the base. The loose ball allowed the Churchill run to score. An out at first would have ended the inning and kept Churchill scoreless.
With one out in the sixth inning and the pitch limit closing in, Garcia suffered yet another speed bump. The blister that had developed on the tip of Garcia’s right index finger popped after he threw a 2-0 pitch for a strike to junior third baseman Kevin Fleisher.
“It always happens to me,” Garcia said. “So, I was just battling through it, and I always have to fight for my brothers.”
Garcia was checked out by medical staff and was cleared to continue. He worked the count full and struck out Fleisher on the seventh pitch of the at-bat. He then struck out the final batter in the inning, giving Garcia his first 1-2-3 frame of the game in what would be his final inning.
“It shows us how much he wants it,” Zamora said. “He was able to fight through the pain for us. That means a lot.”
Pompa joked that maybe the blister helped Garcia.
Freshman Aaron Nixon came on and pitched three innings of relief, giving up two hits and striking out two while allowing the winning hit to Serchay.
McAllen High scored its lone run in the top of the third. Senior shortstop Roy Quintanilla led off with a walk, and senior right fielder Rigo Moreno sacrificed him to second. Quintanilla moved to third on a wild pitch, which also happened to be ball four to Zamora. Senior center fielder Victor Valdez fell behind 0-2 but fought back, taking a ball and fouling off two more pitches before hitting a deep fly ball to right fielder Hudson Head. Head caught it and launched a throw, but it wasn’t going to reach home in time, so first baseman Grant Gomez cut it off to hold Zamora at first, allowing Roy Quintanilla to score.
Several McHi players were suffering from cramps at the end of the game. The extra innings and high temperatures weren’t the only reasons.
“Our charter company didn’t come through with a bus in the morning,” Pompa said. “We had to go in a school bus. It had air conditioning, but it was very uncomfortable. … The kids must have lost 2 or 3 pounds on the way up here. … But that’s not the reason we didn’t perform today. We didn’t get the hit, and they got the hit when it counted.”
McHi is looking to rally tomorrow, as Game 2 gets underway at 1 p.m.
If needed, Game 3 will take place 30 minutes after Game 2.
“It’s not over,” Zamora said. “We can definitely beat this team. We just have to come out fighting.”