Bulldogs rely on short-term memory, rebound to win
Gators’ Game 2 rout goes for naught as Castro tosses gem
DICKINSON — It was a tale of two tilts.
Dickinson rolled to a 10-0 win in five innings in the first game of Saturday’s playoff doubleheader, but La Porte bounced back to win 7-1 in the second, clinching their area-round series in three games.
“We say E + R + O (event plus response equals outcome),” La Porte coach Ricky Torres said.
“That’s what we talked about in between games. We can only go 1-0 in each game, so that’s all we’re trying to do, and the kids responded.
“They had a short-term memory — and they came out with enthusiasm.”
Now they’ll face Atascocita next week in their second straight Region III-6A quarterfinal.
“We set some goals early in the year, we knew we left some unfinished business there last year, and so we wanted to get back to that spot so we could see if we can go further this time,” Torres said.
First, they went to prom — only a few hours after Game 3 ended.
And after winning the way they did, they actually were able to enjoy it, too.
Josiah Castro hadn’t pitched in a couple weeks, but he was ready to toe the rubber for the decisive game.
The junior went the distance on 84 pitches, allowing one run on six hits.
“He’s a competitor,” Torres said. “He’s going to go out there, compete and try to hit the spots. He’s a location pitcher.”
Kacey McCoy supplied the big hit — a three-run triple in the fourth inning.
“That was big,” Torres said. “He’s come up with those quite a bit this year. He’s a big energy guy, so for him to do it was great.”
That hit gave the Bulldogs a 4-0 lead, and they tacked on three more runs in the fifth, highlighted by Joseph Vasquez’s two-run single. The Bulldogs finished with nine hits in six innings.
Vasquez and Mark Gomez finished 2-for-3, and Brett Bihm went 2-for-2 with a walk and two runs scored.
Dickinson made quick work of Game 2.
The Gators jumped out to a 6-0 advantage on catcher Trint Lopez’s solo home run off the scoreboard in left-center in the fourth, then ended the game early with a four-run fifth, capped by consecutive two-run singles from Lopez, who went 3-for-3, and second baseman Andrew Jimenez.
They finished with three consecutive singles, including one from pitcher Hunter Sims, ending La Porte pitcher Dylan Conde’s afternoon early, but it didn’t matter. Jimenez’s game-winner was off D.D. Pineda.
Conde absorbed the loss, surrendering 10 runs on 11 hits with two walks.
Sims picked up the two-hit shutout victory for the Gators, fanning five and walking two on 69 pitches.
Kam Johnson and Guy Garibay each went 2-for-3 in Game 2, and Kiko Nunez was 2-for-2 with two RBIs.
The Gators cranked out 12 hits.
“We were still back in La Porte somewhere,” Torres said. “Some of our best player were not into it. I don’t know. Usually, when we come out and take BP and do things like that, everybody gets going. But (Saturday) we were a little bit sluggish, and we didn’t swing the ball very well at all.” Jason McDaniel is a freelance writer.