By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
EDINBURG — The Los Fresnos Falcons were looking good until the bottom of the fifth inning.
The Falcons were leading 2-0 after scoring a pair of runs in the top of the first, but the Laredo Alexander Bulldogs responded with three runs in the fifth en route to winning Game 1 of the best-of-three Class 6A area-round playoff series between the two teams 3-2 Thursday at the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley Baseball Field.
Game 2 of the series is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at the UTRGV field. Game 3, if necessary, is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday at the same site.
District 29-6A champion Alexander improved to 21-7 on the season, while District 32-6A runner-up Los Fresnos slipped to 23-5.
“We just had one inning where they took some good cuts at our pitches (to score those three runs), and that’s baseball for you,” Los Fresnos coach Rene Morales said. “We’re just going to come out in the next game with a lot of confidence and play as hard as we’ve been playing all season long. We’re going to believe in each other that we can get Game 2 and go from there.”
The Falcons took an early 2-0 advantage in the top of the first thanks to an RBI sacrifice fly to right field by Mark Cortinas and an RBI double to the left-field wall by Nate Reyna.
Then came the bottom of the fifth. Alexander’s Julian Hinojosa hit a double to center field that plated the Bulldogs’ first run.
Teammates Aldo Buendia and Jesus Abrego each followed with RBI singles later in the inning to put the Bulldogs ahead to stay 3-2.
Buendia went the distance to record the pitching win with six strikeouts, no walks and one hit batsman.
Los Fresnos’ Nicholas Montemayor went the distance in taking the loss with three strikeouts and three walks.
Led by Reyna’s 2-for-2 batting effort with a single and a double, the Falcons finished with six hits compared to five for the Bulldogs, whose hits were divided between five different batters.
The Falcons committed two errors, while the Bulldogs had none.
Alexander advanced to the area round of the playoffs with last week’s 11-0 bi-district win against Mission High. Los Fresnos advanced by sweeping a best-of-three bi-district series with Weslaco High 8-1 and 8-4.
The winner between Los Fresnos and Alexander moves on the the third round of the 6A playoffs to face Edinburg High or Del Rio.