BY DENNIS SILVA II | STAFF WRITER
Hidalgo is one win away from a return trip to the Elite 8.
Behind strong defense and the bat of Adrian Ruiz, the Pirates blanked Freeport Brazosport 2-0 in Game 1 of their Class 4A regional semifinal on Friday at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.
Game 2 is at 2 p.m. today at St. Mary’s University.
Ruiz, a key contributor all postseason for Hidalgo, went 2-for-3 with a double and a triple and had both RBIs for the Pirates, who had four total hits.
“He got the key hits and he was just excellent tonight,” Hidalgo coach Karlos Carrasco said. “He just battles. He doesn’t give away at-bats. He will find a way to put the ball in play.
“He’s just a really tough out.”
Ruiz was all senior ace Oscar Noguera (complete game, six strikeouts, two walks, two hits allowed) needed in getting the win on the mound. Noguera also benefited from some strong Pirates defense.
“We played some phenomenal defense,” Carrasco said. “These kids made the big plays. (Brazosport) put the ball in play, but we just made the plays we needed to.”
The Pirates (24-5-1) are in the Sweet 16 for the third consecutive year.