By ANDREW CRUM, Staff Writer
It wasn’t easy for the Porter Cowboys, but they got it done and the celebration was on.
Porter starting pitcher Jose Perez remained poised and got himself out of a few jams along the way, and the Cowboys scored four runs during the first inning to earn a 5-3 win over PSJA High and claim the District 32-5A baseball title Tuesday.
Perez went the distance and got out of a bases-loaded jam with a strikeout during the seventh inning to preserve the victory. The senior pitched seven innings, allowed three runs on nine hits, walked four and struck out nine.
“He was erratic tonight, I don’t think he threw a curveball for a strike all night long,” Porter coach Barton Bickerton said. “But it shows you how much of a battler and how mature the guy is to get through all those errors we had for all those runs we gave up. He did an unbelievable job.
“You give Perez four runs, and you got to feel pretty good about it.”
The last strikeout started the on-field celebration with Porter parents, students and fans, and Bickerton received a customary Gatorade shower as the Cowboys enjoyed their first district title under their coach.
PSJA High got on the board during the first inning. Christian Sanchez hit a two-out triple to put a runner on, and Kike Rubio knocked in the pinch runner with ground-rule double to right to give the Bears a 1-0 lead.
Porter answered quickly during the bottom half of the inning. The Cowboys scored four runs on singles by Chris Munoz and Felix Ledezma, a PSJA High throwing error and Jesus Ramirez’s bases-loaded walk to take a 4-1 lead.
PSJA High starting pitcher Troy Flores lasted two innings on the mound. He allowed four runs on three hits, walked four and struck out two.
“The first inning killed us,” PSJA High coach Marco Guajardo said. “Troygot rattled, didn’t have his best stuff. That caught up to us. It was a big game, and it was going to be one of those back-and-forth games.”
After the teams went scoreless for the next four innings, PSJA High had three straight singles to load the bases with one out in the sixth. R.J. Ramos drew a walk to score and get the Bears within two runs, but Perez struck out the next two batters to end the threat.
The Cowboys added an insurance run during the bottom half of the inning after a passed ball and throwing error by the catcher allowed a pinch runner to score from second base and give Porter a 5-2 lead.
“I knew we were going to need to get at least one more, and thank goodness we squeezed that one out,” Bickerton said. “I think we had a chance almost every inning to score a run and we just didn’t do it, which usually comes back and bites you.”
The Bears added a run on a single by Sanchez to pull within 5-3 but left the bases loaded.
“We had too many strikeouts,” Guajardo said. “I have to give (Jose) Perez credit, he did a hell of a job. We just didn’t put the ball in play like we needed to. I’m proud that we battled back. We didn’t fold the last two innings. We came back and made it a ballgame, made it close.
“It’s not over for us, we’re still here. We’re in second place and going to the playoffs. This is where it starts,we have to bounce back tomorrow.”
After the 12th straight win claimed the district title for the Cowboys, Bickerton expressed how proud he was of his team.
“This team has been pretty incredible,” he said. “To lose right off the bat to team that’s in last place and then run 12 in a row, it’s incredible. They’ve done an unbelievable job.
“I’m not amazed anymore in what they do.”
Andrew Crum covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him at (956) 982-6629 or via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @andrewmcrum.