KEVIN NARRO | Staff Writer
HARLINGEN —Harlingen South fell behind 2-0 early, made a few errors and faced adversity against PSJA Memorial in their series opener Thursday night. Despite the uphill battle, the Lady Hawks answered with a gutsy 7-5 win and took a 1-0 series lead against PSJA Memorial in the Class 6A bi-district round.
For every left hook PSJA Memorial had, Harlingen South had an answer. Freshman Alyssa Ledesma tied the game at 5 on a push bunt, and in the sixth a sacrifice fly from Kaitlynn De La Fuente provided the go-ahead run that gave the Lady Hawks a 6-5 lead. Kytana Muniz added the insurance with an RBI double sealing the win.
Game two of the best of three series will continue tonight at PSJA Memorial, with the first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m. South will have a shot for a second straight bi-district title. Game three will be Saturday at 3 at Harlingen South if needed.
“Right from the get-go they (PSJA Memorial) jumped on us,” said South coach Elias Martinez. “We showed character all season long and we showed that again tonight and we responded. It was a great ball game, it could have gone either way, but fortunately for us it fell in our favor.”
PSJA Memorial jumped out to a 2-0 lead after a pair of RBI singles from Chelsea Salinas and Victoria Maldonado.
South answered with two runs in the first and second inning. Leadoff batter Natasha Canales sparked the offense in both innings. Canales gave the Lady Hawks a 3-2 lead on a RBI single and later scored her second run of the night. Canales would finish 3 for 4 at the plate.
“It’s a lot of fun playing PSJA Memorial, our game styles are similar,” Martinez said. “Coach Gilly Rodriguez is doing a great job with the program. My girls don’t give up and tomorrow is a brand new ball game.”
In the fifth inning, PSJA Memorial rallied to take a one-run lead. From the second through the fourth inning, De La Fuente struck out five of the nine batters she faced and struck out the side once.
After tying the game on a fielder’s choice and taking a 5-4 lead on an error, South managed to get out of the bases loaded jam and limiting the damage. De La Fuente got some help from junior center fielder Melba Rodriguez who patrolled the outfield with mastery.
“I was ready every single pitch,” Rodriguez said. “I did my part to help my pitcher out, I’ve been working on my running and taking the right routes, I focused on the ball and kept my mind in the game.”
De La Fuente helped her own cause with the go ahead run in the sixth, the senior hurler finished with eight strike outs in a complete game effort.
“The movement pitches worked for me, and kept the hitters off balance,” De La Fuente said. “Tonight we showed our mental toughness and that is something Coach Martinez has been preaching to us since he got here. “It helps us to have won the first game, it gives us confidence going into game two.”