When he looked back on how the Bronco Regional ended for his
Morgan Hill All-Stars, manager Brian Bantilan didn’t mind it was
over after a minimal two games
SAN JOSE
When he looked back on how the Bronco Regional ended for his Morgan Hill All-Stars, manager Brian Bantilan didn’t mind it was over after a minimal two games.
The locals showed more about themselves in one inning than most could in nine, which is exactly how long it took a superior Bel Passi squad to beat them 12-11 Thursday in PAL Stadium.
Morgan Hill overcame a five-run deficit in the final two innings of regulation, including a four-run rally in the seventh, but could only delay its elimination from the Bronco World Series qualifier.
“I would have to say they had more talent than us,” Bantilan said. “But with perseverance, we kept at it. … It comes down to baseball being 10 percent physical and 90 percent mental. We showed how mentally tough we are.”
Fans of opposing teams took notice. They praised Kekoa Bantilan after the Morgan Hill starter helped keep the game close with five strikeouts in as many innings. Dalton Habina was just as sturdy in relief, striking out five in four innings.
Habina also came through with a tying two-run double in the seventh after Morgan Hill cut an 11-7 deficit in half on an RBI by Ryan Spohn. Nathaniel Aguayo, who led off the inning with a single, scored on a passed ball.
“The kids showed no signs of giving up,” Brian Bantilan said.
The Morgan Hill All-Stars were known for their resiliency. They advanced to Regionals two weeks ago after losing 15-5 to nationally ranked Blossom Valley A in their section tournament in San Jose. Morgan Hill bounced back with two straight victories, including a nail-biting 9-8 victory over co-host Blossom Valley B, to clinch one of the tournament’s three invites to Regionals. Morgan Hill lost its next game, 19-7, to Blossom Valley A, but staved off losing by 10-run rule until the sixth inning.
“I definitely didn’t have the best team we could field,” Brian Bantilan said. “We had a couple of the top 10 players in Bronco decline to play, so I went with kids I felt were mentally tough.
“It doesn’t matter how big you are. It matters what’s inside you.”
In its regional opener Tuesday, Morgan Hill looked out of sync during a 14-0 loss to eventual champion Vacaville. The locals put that behind them the following day at practice.
“It was one of those practices that you know something happened, but you don’t need to say anything about it,” their manager said. “We went through our normal program, went into hitting and fielding, and the kids’ spirits were above and beyond what you’d think coming off that loss.
In a tough tournament like this, you need to have faith in yourself. We knew that was going to be a battle.”
Following a trend from the previous two games, when Morgan Hill trailed 9-0 after one inning against to Blossom Valley and 7-0 after 2 2-3 innings against Vacaville, the locals fell behind 4-0 in the first inning Thursday but closed the deficit to 8-6 entering the fifth inning. That’s when Bel Passi poured in three more runs to take an insurmountable 11-6 lead — or so it seemed until the seventh.
Bel Passi won it two innings later on an RBI single.
“It was the best game you’ll see for 12-year-olds,” Bantilan said. “It was a great battle.
“As a staff we couldn’t have been any prouder of what the kids did and the season we had. Some of these kids play on my travel ball team, and we’ve never had a loss like (Tuesday), just a physical loss. For them to have the spirit that they did Thursday … it’s something to be proud of.”
