By CLAIRE CRUZ, Staff Writer
CORPUS CHRISTI – Hitting has been contagious for the Los Fresnos Lady Falcons all season, and they got the bug again to take a series-opening win over Austin Bowie on Friday.
Los Fresnos jumped on the Lady Bulldogs early, then pulled away behind a pair of home runs in the sixth and seventh to secure a 9-3 victory in Game 1. The Lady Falcons will have two chances to earn a trip to the Region IV-6A final today, with Game 2 slated for 1 p.m. at Cabaniss Athletic Complex and Game 3, if needed, starting at 3 p.m.
“We were battling here at the plate. … Just joking, they said, ‘Coach, you didn’t think we’d go a playoff game without a home run, did you?’” Los Fresnos coach Traci Blackman said. “I think we were in a stalemate there for a little because we weren’t hitting, and then in true fashion we had a breakthrough inning and that was really good. … You always want to win Game 1, because who knows what can happen tomorrow. We got to stay ready to go. Not going to take anything for granted, and we got to keep them humbled.”
Left fielder Victoria Altamirano and catcher Sam Campos knocked back-to-back hits in the first to get the energetic Lady Falcons dugout going. First baseman Kayla Jimenez scored them both with a two-run double to left field.
The Lady Falcons extended their lead in the top of the third. Campos recorded her second straight single, then third baseman Krystal Perez followed suit with a single to right. Jimenez put another hard shot in play, scoring two and advancing to second with help from a Bowie error to make it 4-0 Los Fresnos.
“I came in and had a mindset, like, I’m going to hit the ball because that’s what I’m supposed to do,” Jimenez said. “I had to help my teammates out, especially (pitcher Kate Perez) because they weren’t calling a lot of her pitches.”
Bowie cut into the lead in the bottom half of the frame following a pair of errors committed by the Lady Falcons. Los Fresnos center fielder Teresa Villa ended the threat with a laser throw to home to get a runner out, keeping the Lady Falcons on top 4-2.
The Lady Bulldogs’ defense kept the dangerous Los Fresnos lineup quiet during the fourth and fifth innings. Bowie pitcher Emma Solis got into a bit of a rhythm, and a double play after a good snag on a line drive helped her work through the innings quickly.
In the final two frames, Los Fresnos showed its fight. Second baseman Andrea Guevara hustled to reach on a dropped third strike, then her aggressive approach on the basepaths rattled the Lady Bulldogs. She took a big lead off second base and caused a throwing error by the catcher, and as the ball rolled into the outfield, Guevara sped home to score.
After a walk and a hit batter, Altamirano stepped into the box and hit a booming three-run home run to put Los Fresnos in control with an 8-2 lead.
“I knew I had to come through. I had that hit in the beginning then I was kind of struggling. I realized she was just leaving it there and I took the first one, then I was, like, ‘Man, if she pitches there again I’m ripping it,’ and it felt good. It felt nice to come through and coming running home to my teammates,” Altamirano said.
The Lady Falcons are averaging two home runs per playoff game, and they kept that pace in the regional semifinal. Jimenez started the seventh with a solo homer off the top of the left-center wall to add an insurance run.
“Hitting that home run felt really good,” Jimenez said. “What I saw was, she was a really good pitcher, not going to lie, but she was just leaving it there.”
The top of the Bowie lineup came up in the bottom of the seventh and strung together three singles to score a late run. Los Fresnos’ defense was clutch to close out the win. Campos threw Laine Smith out at second as she tried to stretch an RBI single, and a pair of catches on deep shots to left by Altamirano ended the game.
Los Fresnos pitcher Kate Perez got the win behind a complete game effort with seven hits and three strikeouts. Jimenez drove in a team-high five runs behind two hits. Altamirano and Campos both had a pair of hits, too, and Altamirano said this big win has the Lady Falcons in a good place heading into the final day of the series.
“It gives us a lot of confidence. We know we can hit, we know we have a great pitcher, we just want to come out here and show out tomorrow like we did tonight,” Altamirano said.