MH will play Tuesday night for West Zone tourney berth Special
to The Times One more win for the Morgan Hill Pony all-stars and
they
’re on their way to Fullerton.
MH will play Tuesday night for West Zone tourney berth
Special to The Times
One more win for the Morgan Hill Pony all-stars and they’re on their way to Fullerton.
If the local all-star team can pull off a single victory in this week’s Regional Tournament finals against a team it’s already beaten once, it’s off to the West Zone tourney in Fullerton.
It also means the dream of making the World Series is still alive.
After winning three straight last weekend, the MH Pony all-stars play the loser’s bracket winner — Santa Clara or Pleasanton — for the regional title at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Rosita Field in Los Altos.
MH has already beaten both teams earlier in the double-elimination tourney, so if one or the other manages to beat the local team a second winner-take-all game would be played on Wednesday.
Following are the results from the local team’s first three Regional Tournament games.
On Friday, the MH Pony all-star team defeated Daly City 20-0, as five pitchers combined for a no-hitter over five innings, in a 20-0 “mercy” rule win.
Morgan Hill scored runs in all five innings, and were never challenged by the Daly City squad.
In the first inning, Morgan Hill scored three runs, as Jonathan Hughes, Ryan Evanger, and Matt Cummins all had singles and Kevin Grove added a double.
In the second inning, Morgan Hill put the game away, plating seven runs, with Hughes, Evanger, and Stephen Smith each singling and combining for five RBIs in the inning.
Meanwhile, pitchers James Johnson, Vince Hatakeyama, Grove, Evanger, and Cummins blanked the Daly City team without a hit, and allowed just four baserunners over five innings, with nine strikeouts.
In the third inning, Morgan Hill scored three more times, as Hughes, Adam Perez, and Hatakeyama all scored.
In the fourth inning, Christian Lam and Grove both had doubles, with Evanger and Hatakeyama adding run-scoring singles.
And, in the 5th inning, Morgan Hill scored its final four runs, as Hughes, Evanger, Johnson, and Danny Nelson all scored.
Evanger (4-for-5, four runs, five RBIs), Hughes (3-for-4, four runs), Hatakeyama (2-for-2, two runs), Grove (2-for-3, three RBIs), and Nelson (2-for-3, two runs, two RBIs) all had multiple hit games for the winners.
On Saturday, Morgan Hill routed Santa Clara 16-5 in the winner’s bracket semifinals. MH’s Billy Hill led off the game with a sharp double to left field, and scored on an RBI single from Jonathan Hughes.
Starting pitcher Jacob Dexter was brilliant over the first five innings, allowing just a double in the second inning and a single in the fifth, with neither runner scoring.
After a one-out walk in the third inning, Dexter assisted on a 1-6-3 double play, with Hill turning the gem.
Morgan Hill exploded for five runs in the third inning, as Hill once again singled, and was sacrificed to second by Hughes. Ryan Evanger reached on a fielder’s choice and Adam Perez followed with an RBI single, scoring Hill. Matt Cummins blasted a double, driving in two runs. After Kevin Grove was walked, Christian Lam and Dexter both reached safely to load the bases. With two outs and a 3-2 count, Danny Nelson lined a sharp single to left, driving in the final two runs of the inning.
Morgan Hill scored single runs in the third, fourth, and fifth, making the score 9-0.
In the bottom of the fifth, Santa Clara’s first hitter hit a ball that was clearly a ground-rule double, bouncing over the right-field fence.
However, the umpires ruled the hit a home run, and after one out and a walk and two singles, their catcher blasted a grand slam, cutting the MH lead to 9-5.
But Dexter worked his way out of the inning, inducing two groundouts to Cummins.
Morgan Hill responded with seven runs of its own in the top of the seventh to put the game away.
On Sunday, in the winner’s bracket finale, Morgan Hill beat Pleasanton 9-6.
MH starting pitcher James Johnson allowed just two doubles over the first three innings, with three strikeouts and no walks.
Morgan Hill scored twice in the bottom of the first inning, as Smith had a one-out walk, and was singled to second by Evanger. Perez doubled in both runs, as his ball just eluded the left fielder.
In the bottom of the second inning, with two outs, Nelson reached safely and Hill followed with a single. Smith had an RBI single, scoring Nelson, and Hill scored on a wild pitch.
In the third inning, Perez walked and eventually scored on an error from Pleasanton.
The game tightened in the next three innings, as Pleasanton scored single runs off Johnson in each of the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. But Morgan Hill played solid defense, and did not commit any errors, in holding the opponents to the three runs.
In the fourth inning, Hill singled and eventually scored on a deep sacrifice fly by Evanger.
In the bottom of the 6th inning, Grove induced a walk and Dexter also walked on four pitches. After one out, Christian Lam’s single plated Grove, and Evanger had another sacrifice fly, scoring Dexter. Lam eventually would score on the third error of the game by Pleasanton.
The three runs were huge, as Pleasanton would come back in the top of the seventh to score three also, but Cummins induced two groundball outs and a line drive that was snared by Lam to end the game.
