Mustang A All-Stars hang tough at Super Regional

It might have taken three games to find their footing, but the Morgan Hill Mustang A All-Star team is playing its best baseball at the right time.
The team, which started the Super Regional tournament in Ceres with a 7-4 loss to Sierra Valley on Friday, outscored its last two opponents 17-1 to reach the quarterfinals of the elimination bracket Monday.
Morgan Hill used strong pitching from Gio Saso, Cory Taylor and Will Hansboro to reach Monday’s game against rival Paso Robles. The game did not finish before press time. However, results will be posted online at morganhilltimes.com.
The tournament did not begin well for Morgan Hill as the team started “flat,” manager Vince Lagatta said.
“The game against Sierra Valley was disappointing,” he said. “We came out a little flat. We could never get into it.”
Sierra Valley took a 2-0 lead in the first inning and never relented as Morgan Hill pulled no closer than 4-1.
After the loss, Morgan Hill faced Brentwood in the first game of the elimination bracket Saturday. Taylor and Hansboro combined for six innings of one-run baseball for Morgan Hill in a 7-1 win.
The Mustang team jumped on Brentwood in the opening frame, scoring three first-inning runs. Zack Geig hit a two-run double off the wall to give Morgan Hill the lead. Morgan Hill never trailed while adding four more runs.
Morgan Hill advanced to Monday’s quarterfinals with a dominant 10-0 win over Salinas Valley on Sunday. Despite the four-inning shortened game, Morgan Hill struggled to find any offense until the game’s third inning.
In a 0-0 game, Morgan Hill sent 15 batters to the plate in the third and scored 10 runs to take control.
“Everybody was hitting,” Lagatta said. “We finally got it going.”
Saso, Vinnie Lagatta and Taylor each contributed two hits in the inning to spark the Morgan Hill offense. Saso, Geig and Lagatta also combined for four shutout innings on the mound.
The victory set up Monday’s game against Paso Robles. The elimination game is the fifth time the two teams have played each other in the past two years.
“They are our rival,” Lagatta said. “We see them every year. They are a familiar foe.”
If Morgan Hill wins, they face Sierra Valley in the semifinals right after the game Monday.
“Our goals is to play two games on Monday,” Lagatta said.